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Life of David Livingstone. 




DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 
(On first going to Africa.) 



'•'HE NEEDS NO EPITAPH TO GUARD A NAME 

WH,CH MEN SHALL PRIZE WHILE WORTHY WORK » KNOWN, 
HE LIVED AND DIED FOR GOOD-BE THAT HIS FAME: 
LET MARBLE CRMUBLEJ THIS IS LIVING-STONE." 



I^IFIC 



DAVID LIVINGSTONE, 



The Heroic EMstiai? Missionary and African Explorer. 



INCLUDING AN AUTHENTIC AND SOMEWHAT EXTENDED ACCOUNT OP HIS 
MORE IMPORTANT TRAVELS, MISSIONARY LABORS, AND DISCOVER- 
IES; TOGETHER WITH THE MOST COMPLETE PROCURABLE 
INFORMATION TOUCHING HIS LAST ILLNESS AND 
DEATH, AND A FULL DESCRIPTION OF THE 
OBSEQUIES AT WESTMINSTER ABBEY. 



BY ANNIK MARIA BARNES. 

( " COUSIN ANNIE." ) if 



Diligently Revised, Edited, and Illustrate 



NASHVILLE, TENN.: 

PUBLISHING HOUSE OF THE M. E. CHURCH, SOUTH, 

SUNDAY-SCHOOL DEPARTMENT. 

J. D. Barbee, Agent. 

1888. 




<1^ 



Entered, according to Act of Congress* in the year 1888, 

By the Book Agents of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, 

in the office of the Librarian of Congress at Washington. 



.4) 



^fe. 



TO 

My True and Tried Friend, 

14 R. WILLIAM A. HAYGOOD, 

OF ATLANTA, GA-, 
In Grateful Remembrance. 



^^" 



AUTHORITIES CONSULTED. 



Blaikie's u Personal Life of David Livingstone." 
Roberts's u Life and Explorations of David Livingstone.'" 
McGilchrist's "Life of the Great African Traveler, Dr. Livingstone." 
Day's "-African Adventure and Adventurers." 

Extracts from Livingstone's "Missionary Travels and Researches in 
South Africa." 

(6) 






CONTENTS. 



Chapter I. PAGE 

Parentage — Early Years — His Life as a Factory Boy — The Awak- 
ening of Noble Impulses — His Filial Devotion— His u Bred-in- 
the-bone" Perseverance — Nature's Instructions — Geological 
Researches— Locked Out— His Patient Submission to His Fa- 
ther's Will 11- 26 

Chapter II. 
His Home Life— The Tender Regard Shown His Sisters— His Keen 
Sense of the Humorous— A Laughable Episode— The Spiritual 
Change that Came to Him— He Enters the University as a Med- 
ical Student — His Determination to Become a Missionary 27- 36 

Chapter III. 

A Question that Vexed the World — The Sources of the Nile — The 
Bruce, Speke, and Baker Expeditions — England Triumphant 
—The Spirit that Moved Livingstone 37- 42 

Chapter IY. 

Livingstone's Arrival at Cape Town— The Popular Theory Con- 
cerning Africa— The Trip Across the Country to Kuruman— lie 
Hears of a Wonderful Lake — A Journey Farther Into the Inte- 
rior—His reception by the Bechuanas— The First Sowingof the 
Good Seed— Meets with Bubi— A Shocking Occurrence— Poor 
Sekomi's Troublesome Heart — The Visit to the Bakaa — His 
First Sermon — Discovers an Iron Manufacturing People — .An 
Amusing Predicament— The Return to Kuruman 43- 58 

Chapter V. 

The Bakatla Welcome Livingstone's Return with Great Demon- 
. strations— His Lion Adventure— He Becomes a Hero— His Mar- 
riage to Mary Moffat— Their Home at Mabotsa— They Leave 
Mabotsa for Chonuane — The Greai Chief, Sechele — The Re- 
moval to Kolobeng— u Did Your Fathers Know?"— Sechele's 
Conversion— The Maliciousness of the Boers — Livingstone's 
Brave Deed — He Establishes a Claim Upon the Bakwains— An 
Enthusiastic Bellman— The Missionary's Earnest Work Be- 
gins to be Rewarded *. 59- 77 

Chapter YI. 

An African Village— The Government of the Bec.hu an a Tribes — 
Sechele Erects a Church and School-house u To the Honor of 
God" — Mrs. Livingstone's Noble Labors — The Cheerful Life of 
the Brave Missionary and His Wife— A Trying Period— Living- 
stone's Enduring Patience and Unshaken Trust — The African 
Method of Procuring Meat—The Hostile Attitude of the Boers 
Grows More Threatening— Sechele/s Noble Reply 78- 86 

Chapter YII. 

Livingstone Starts in Search of LakoNgami — The Kalahari Desert 
— Sekomi's Treacherous Behavior—The Bushmen and Bakla- 
hari — Livingstone's Hospitable Reception — Crossing the Des- 
ert — The Scarcity of Water— Sufferings and Hardships — The 
Deception of the Mirage — Beaching the Zouga — New Hopes 
and Desires— Livingstone's Absorbing Dream— The Wonderful 
Lake and the Country Surrounding It — The Return to Kolo- 
beng 87-10»> 



8 CONTENTS. 



Chapter VIII. page 

How the News of the Discovery of the Ngami and Zouga was Re- 
ceived in England— The Endeavor to Reach the Great Chief, 
Sebituane— Second Attempt— Mrs. Livingstone and Her Chil- 
dren of the Party— Failure of the Undertaking— Return to Kolo- 
beng— Dastardly Raid of the Boers— Third and Successful At- 
tempt to Reach Sebituane — Incidents bv the Way — Sebituane's 
Death ". 307-123 

Chapter IX. 

Mamochisane Succeeds Sebituane — Her Graciousness to Living- 
stone — Livingstone and Oswell Make a Short Journey of Ex- 
ploration — Discovery of the Zambesi — The Charming River 
Country — The Abundance of Animal Life — Livingstone's Ten- 
der Heart— A Pathetic Scene 124-137 

Chapter X. 

A Horrifying Incident — Livingstone Heart-sick Because of the 
Slave-trade — His Determination to Find a Remedy — A Gigan- 
tic Undertaking— He Sends His Family to England— His Touch- 
ing Letters to Them— The Proposed March from u Sea to Sea" 
— Another Attack by the Boers upon Sechele — The Indignant 
Chief's Intended Visit to the Queen 138-150 

Chapter XI. 

The Departure from Kuruman— Heavy Rains— The Flooded Dis- 
tricts—Terrible Sufferings of the Party— Livingstone's Courage 
and Trust — Arrival at Liny an ti — The Young Chief Sekeletu— 
Incidents of the Sojourn at Linyanti— The Mission-work Among 
the Makololo— Sekeletu's Dangerous Rival 151-165 

Chapter XII. 

The Start in Search of a Healthy Locality — The Demonstrative 
Reception by the People — Livingstone Frustrates Mpepe's 
Wicked Design— Mpepe's Death— Up the Zambesi— A Pathetic 
Incident — The Valley of the Barotse— Heathenism in its Most 
Revolting Aspect — The Barotse Dance of Welcome— Living- 
stone Visits Katonga— Pushes Farther up the River — Contin- 
ued Discouragement— The Return to Linyanti 166-178 

Chapter XIII. 

Livingstone Again Labo v s Among the Makololo— His Letter to His 
Children— The Start from Linyanti for the Coast — Arrival at 
Sesheke— Incidents — The Journey up the Zambesi — Glimpses 
of African Natural History — Manenko, the Amazon Chieftain- 
ess— Two Native Belles— Approaching the Stronghold of the 
Slave Traffic 179-201 

Chapter XIY. 

Questionable Hospitality— At the Village of Nyamoana— A Cor- 
dial Reception— The TBalonda Court of State— Gallantry of Liv- 
ingstone — Proposed Journey to Shinte's Town — Arrival of Ma- 
nenko— The Start for Kabompo— Marching Through the Rain 
—Incidents of the Way 202-216 

Chapter XV. 

The Charming Situation of Kabompo — An Ideal Native Village — 
The Blot that Obscured the Smiling Fairness of the Scene— The 
Reception at the Kotla — The Private Interview with Shinte — 
Manenko Again Heard From — The Impressions Created by the 
Magic Lantern— Shinte's Water-drawer— Sambanze is g'iven 
More than a Curtain Lecture — Livingstone is Shocked bj T a 
Proposal of Shinte's— Preparations to Leave Kabompo — The 
Chief Gives Eloquent Proof of His Friendship 217-230 



CONTENTS. 



Chapter XVI. PAGK 

A Country of Luxuriant Forests— Further Signs of Idolatry— A 
Potent Question — The u Great Lord Katenia"— Livingstone 
Renders an Important Service— Katema's Gratitude— The Hos- 
pitality of His People— The Good Mozinkwa and His Wife— An 
Amateur Snuff Manufacturer— The Story of ihe Cross— A Wind 
from the North— Crossing the Great Water-shed of the North 
and South Rivers — Inhospitable Tribes — An Extraordinary 
"Pikeman"— The Steadfast Devotion of the Makololo 231-215 

Chapter XVII. 

Desperate Straits — The Hostile Chiboque — Livingstone's Calm- 
ness and Courage Save the Party — Seized with Fever — The 
Men Threaten Mutiny— A Decisive Moment — Livingstone's 
Nerve — The Hearts of the Makololo Fail Them — A Gloomy 
Sunday — Light Through the Clouds — u Children of Jesus" — 
Nearingthe Portuguese Settlements— Across the Quango — Hos- 
pitality of the People— In Sight of the Sea— Rest at Last 246-258 

Chapter XVIII. 

The Mystery Cleared — Livingstone's Dangerous Illness and His 
Recovery — He Calls Upon the Bishop — The Makololo Make a 
Fine Impression— Free Passages to England are Offered Liv- 
ingstone— The Heroic Stand for Duty— He Takes His Men on 
Shipboard — Their Wonder at the Strange Sights — The Depart- 
ure from Loanda— Generosity of the Merchants — The Return 
Through the Portuguese Settlements— Incidents of the Way— 
Pitsane's Little Ruse — At Katema's Town— Shinte's — Home 
Again 259-273 

Chapter XIX. 

The Departure for tne East Coast— Sekeletu's Proof of His Devo- 
tion — The Grave of the Chief Sekote— The Great Victoria Falls 
— The Country of the Batoka— A Degraded Tribe— The Gospel 
of Peace — Dangers and Difficulties— At the Junction of the Lo- 
angwa and the Zambesi — Hostility of the Tribes— A Perilous 
Position — The Revengeful Chief, Mpende— In Answer to Prayer. 274-294 

Chapter XX. 
Gradually Increasing Signs of Civilization— Sand-filled Rivers— 
At Monina's Village — Death of Poor Monahin— Worn Down 
with Fatigue— A Civilized Breakfast — At Tete— Generosity and 
Hospitality of Major Sicard— Illness— Arrival at Kilimane — 
Greeted with Sad Intelligence— Insanity and Death of Sekwebu 
— The Departure for Home— Arrival in England — Enthusiastic 
Reception — Livingstone's Extreme Modesty — The Quiet So- 
journ at Newstead Abbey — Literary Labors 285-308 

Chapter XXI. 
Return to Africa— The Reception at Cape Town— The "Ma-Rob- 
ert"— Object of the Second Expedition — Discovery of the True 
Mouth of the Zambesi— The Sail Up the River— Arrival at Tete 
— The Kebrebasa Rapids— Unsatisfactory Conduct of the ^Ma- 
Robert" — Exploration of the Shire— Discovery of Lakes shirna 
and Nvassa — Steps Toward the Establishment of a Mission 
Station— Unexpected News of the Arrival of a Little Stranger. 809-330 

Chapter XXII. 

Going Home with the Makololo— A Second Look at the Victoria 
Falls— Painful News— Arrival at Sesheke— Sekeletu's Terrible 
Condition— Livingstone Effects a Cure— Painful Forebodings in 
Regard to the Makololo— The Return to the Tete— Devot ion of 
Livingstone's Men— Dr. Kirke Meets with a Loss— The New 
Steamer " Pioneer "—Arrival of Bishop McKenzie and Assist- 



10 CONTENTS. 



TAG E 

ants — To the Mouth of the Rovuraa— Up the Shire— At Chibisa's 
Town— Liberation of the Slaves— An Errand of Peace Turned 
Into One of War— The New Mission — Arrival of Mrs. Living- 
Btone, Miss McKenzie, and Others — Disastrous Ending of the 
Little Mission— Illness and Death of Mrs. Livingstone— Second 
Exploration of the Rovuma— Again up the Shire — An Appalling- 
State of Affairs— Tiie Curse of the Slave-trade 331-350 

Chapter XXIII. 
Livingstone Again in England— Death of His Mother— " Fear God 
and Work Hard"— His Impressions in Regard to the Nile 
Sources — The Return to Africa — The Start for the Interior — 
Bad Conduct of the Men— The World Loses Sight of Him— Re- 
ported Death — Fears and Doubts — Mr. Young Goes in Search 
of Him— News of His Safety— Letters— The Dispatches from 
Bangweolo— Another Period of Silence and Suspense — Stanley 
to the Rescue , 351-368 

Chapter XXIY. 
Sore Straits— Loss of the Medicine-chest — Across the Chimb we 
and Chambeze— take Tanganyika — Moero— At Cazembe's — 
Atrocious Cruelties — Missionary Labors — The Start in Search of 
Lake Bangweolo— Desertion of 'the Men— Return from the Lake 
—On the Road to Ujiji— Distressing Illness— Across Lake Tan- 
ganyika — Arrival at Ujiji — Disappointments — Another Weari- 
some Tramp — Ujiji Again — Livingstone is Found by Stanley.... 369-390 

Chapter XXV. 

Stanley's Description of Livingstone— Examination of Northern 
End of Lake Tanganyika — The Departure from Ujiji — The Sep- 
aration at Unyanyembe — News of the Finding of Livingstone 
—Later Reports of His Death— Reports Confirmed— The Last 
Tramp— Illness— Last Hours— Death 391-113 

Chapter XXVI. 
Devotion of Livingstone's Men — The Body Borne to the Coast— Ar- 
rival in England — Universal Sorrow— Obsequies at Westmin- 
ster Abbey— Inscription Upon the Tomb .. 414-423 



ILLUSTRATIONS. 

David Livingstone 2 

On the Bosom of the Mystic Nile 36 

Rude Methods of Agriculture as Practiced by Bubi's People 50 

The Terror of Bamangwato 52 

Livingstone's Rescue from the Lion 62 

An African Village 79 

Some Inhabitants of the Zouga Jungles 102 

The Wily Bird in His Native Bush 114 

A Disastrous Elephant Hunt 127 

The King of the African Forests 130 

A Bevy of Linyanti Belles 159 

Tribal War-dance ~ 176 

Spoonbill. and Companion Birds 193 

One of Shinte's Subjects 220 

A Forest Prowler 234 

Victoria Falls, Zambesi River 278 

On the Zambesi Delta 314 

Tree-dwellers in Africa 320 

A Missionary Station in Africa 342 

Baobab-tree and Native Hut 347 

Henry M. Stanley 368 

Chnniah and Susi 387 

Stanley Meeting Livingstone 390 

Livingstone Carried through the Swamps 400 

Livingstone's Last Journey. 404 

Livingstone Carried Into the Hut to Die 40i 



Life op Dayid Liymtom 



CHAPTER I. 



PARENTAGE — EARLY YEARS — HIS LIFE AS A FACTORY BOY — THE 
AWAKENING OF NOBLE IMPULSES— HIS FILIAL DEVOTION — HIS 
"BRED-IN-THE-BONE" PERSEVERANCE— NATURE'S INSTRUCTIONS 
— GEOLOGICAL RESEARCHES — LOCKED OUT — HIS PATIENT SUB- 
MISSION TO HIS FATHER'S WILL. 



THE story of no other life can be read with greater prof- 
it by the youth of to-day, nor can any other convey to 
them a stronger or a more beautiful lesson of courage, faith, 
and self-denial, than that of David Livingstone, the in- 
trepid Christian missionary and explorer. From its earli- 
est childhood to its sad and pathetic close, that life bears 
eloquent testimony of what determined will, untiring effort, 
and a pure and steadfast devotion to an ennobling purpose 
can accomplish. Whether as factory boy, or as the reso- 
lute young medical student plodding the eighteen miles each 
day to and from his university, or as the courageous and 
devoted missionary in the very heart of savage Africa, every 
incident of Livingstone's striking career affords instructive 
and elevating study. 

To " Bonnie Scotland " is due the honor of having given 
to the world four of its most famous African travelers and 
explorers — Mungo Park, Moffat, Bruce, and David Living- 
stone* Of all these names, each of which has justly won 

(ID 



12 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



its measure of renown, that of David Livingstone stands 
deservedly at the head. 

It was at Blantyre, Lanarkshire, Scotland, a town de- 
voted almost entirely to the cotton factory interests, that 
David Livingstone was born, March 19th, 1813. His par- 
ents were humble but pious and worthy people, who early 
sought to instill into the minds of their children those higher 
principles of truth and integrity that should be their guide 
through life. Of his father many contradictory accounts 
are given. Some speak of him as an exceedingly stern, 
hard man ; others again as a lenient and kindly one. It is 
probable that, like so many of his rugged race, he com- 
bined in his character both kindliness and rigor. There 
are various little incidents that go to prove that he was the 
possessor of many admirable qualities, though so rigid and 
unyielding on most points. That his children feared him, 
there can be no doubt; that they also loved and revered 
him, the after testimony of his famous son bears eloquent 
witness. When crowned with honors, and when, with the 
admiration and applause of the whole civilized w T orld di- 
rected toward him, he was hastening from the interior of 
Africa on his first return to England, he declared that he 
anticipated no greater pleasure than that of sitting by his 
father's humble fireside and relating to him the many inci- 
dents of his travels and explorations. What was the ap- 
plause of a world, the praise of the highest and mightiest — 
even the commendation of his Queen — to that aged parent's 
honest pride and child-like delight in his recitals? But 
alas! it was not to be. Ere he had yet come in sight of his 
native shores, the news of his father's death was borne to 
him. He was so overcome that for days he took little note 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



13 



of what was going on around him. Afterward, when speak- 
ing of his loss and of his father's excellence, he declared: 
"I honor and revere his memory." Again he says: "He 
deserves my lasting gratitude and homage for presenting 
me from infancy with a continuously consistent, pious ex- 
ample—such as that the ideal of which is so beautifully and 
truthfully portrayed in Burns's < Cotter's Saturday Night.'" 
Those familiar with this homely .yet strong and beautiful 
picture of the aged and pious cotter can well appreciate the 
son's loving and tender tribute. 

Of his mother there are no conflicting accounts — only 
the one testimony unwavering throughout: gentle, patient, 
brave, and tender— such a mother as imprints in letters of 
gold upon the minds and hearts of her children life's best 
and noblest lessons; such a mother as causes her influence 
to be felt from generation to generation. There is strength 
as well as beauty in the saying of the old Jewish rabbi : 
"God could not be everywhere, and therefore he made 
mothers." A mother in the truest sense was the mother of 
David Livingstone. Though possessed of but little educa- 
tion, she w r as nevertheless a woman singularly sweet and re- 
fined in her manner, quiet and gentle in all that she did. 
Her loving and kindly nature was in distinct contrast with 
her husband's sterner, more rugged disposition. In every 
thing she was a worthy and noble helpmeet to him ; to her 
children a mother whom they might indeed "rise up and 
call blessed." Her own beautifully consistent Christian 
example had much to do with keeping alive in their hearts 
a reverence for sacred things — such a reverence as grows 
into the character, molding it and building it into a strong 
and fearless structure, against which the fierce waves of in- 



14 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



fidel creeds may in after years dash in vain. Beyond a 
doubt, this sweet and gracious example was oftener pro- 
ductive of good results than were her husband's sterner 
methods. 

Like nearly jail the Highlanders, Dr. Livingstone's an- 
cestors were Roman Catholics ; but when the Protestant 
religion was sweeping all else before it in Scotland, the 
sturdy old chief of the clan was converted to it, and be- 
came one of the most uncompromising of the believers. 

Dr. Livingstone was always proud of his ancestry — 
proud in a justly commendable way; for though none of 
them had ever been rich in this world's goods, or highly 
distinguished as far as worldly honors go, they had been 
something better and nobler still — honest, fearless men, 
with not a stain upon a single name through a long line. 
How much grander such a record than mere titles, rank, 
or emblazoned escutcheons! What nobler title can there 
be than that of " honest gentleman?" what mightier ensign 
than that of " Truth " indelibly stamped upon one's life- 
banner? 

There was a tradition in the Livingstone family of one 
of the ancestors, a poor but sturdy and honest old High- 
lander, who, when he lay upon his death-bed, called his 
children around him and thus exhorted them: "Now, in 
my life-time I have searched most carefully through all the 
traditions I could find of our family, and I never could dis- 
cover that there was a single dishonest man among our 
forefathers. If, therefore, any of you, or any of your chil- 
dren, should take to dishonest ways, it will not be because 
it rung in our blood. It does not belong to you. I leave 
this precept with you: 'Be honest!'" What a record to 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 15 



stand from generation to generation, unaltered! "Not a 
dishonest man among us." Ah ! truly " a good name is 
rather to be chosen than great riches, and loving favor than 
silver and gold." 

In the preface to his " Missionary Travels and Researches 
in Southern Africa," Dr. Livingstone gives a brief sketch 
of his early life, together with some information in regard 
to his more immediate ancestry. Throughout it bears the 
stamp of that modest diffidence so noticeable at all times 
when he speaks of himself or of things directly concerning 
himself. No man ever lived and attained to the heights 
of eminence reached by David Livingstone, and withal 
preserved a sincerer and more entire forgetfulness of his 
own identity. It was this singularly sweet modesty of de- 
meanor, this entire putting away of self, that made him 
more admired and beloved than all the intrepid endurance 
that carried him through the heart of a savage country, or 
the bold courage that made him the hero of a hundred 
hair-breadth escapes. Speaking of his ancestors, in the 
preface to which we have alluded, Dr. Livingstone remarks: 
"One great-grandfather fell at the battle of Culloden, 
fighting for the old line of kings, and one grandfather was 
a small farmer in Ulva, where my father was born. It was 
one of that cluster of the Hebrides spoken of by Sir Wal- 
ter Scott : 

And Ulva dark, and Colonsay, 

And all the group of islets gay 
That guard famed Staffa round."' 

Pr. Livingstone was very fond of the traditions and the 
legends of his forefathers, which had come down through 
line after line as an inheritance to be sacredly treasured 



16 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



and transmitted from father to son. His paternal grand- 
father, in particular, was a great reciter of these wonderful 
stories. Not only did he regale his youthful audience with 
the fascinating accounts of the deeds and the exploits of 
their own ancestors, but he was familiar with all those tra- 
ditionary legends that afterward gave the great Sir Walter 
Scott so much material for his famous " Tales of a Grand- 
father." 

"As a boy," says Dr. Livingstone years later, when speak- 
ing of his grandfather's favorite practice, "I remember 
listening with delight, for his memory was stored with a 
never-ending stock of stories, many of which were wonder- 
fully like those I have since heard while sitting by the Af- 
rican evening fires." 

To this grandfather Livingstone was especially attached. 
He was a rugged old Scot, with but few of the faults and 
many of the virtues of his race. He was noted above all 
traits for his unswerving honesty, thus nobly bearing out the 
stainless reputation of his family. He was the grandfather 
alluded to as "a small farmer in Ulva." For many years 
he quietly labored as a tiller of the soil ; but as his fam- 
ily increased he found the income from his few acres 
altogether insufficient for even their most pressing needs. 
This led him to dispose of his farm, and to remove to the 
Bl an tyre Cotton Works, where he hoped to obtain employ- 
ment not only for himself, but also for his sons that were 
large enough to work. 

The Blantyre Cotton Works were at Blantyre, a small 
manufacturing town on the river Clyde, nine miles above 
Glasgow. The worthy old Scot was not long in procuring 
a position, and that, too, one of trust from the very first. 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 17 

So much for the good name borne by his family, the her- 
ald of which had preceded him. He entered as messen- 
ger the service of the Messrs. Monteith & Co., proprietors 
of the factory. A part of his duty was to convey large 
sums of money to and from Glasgow. Not once did he fail 
in the trust. Indeed, so unflinching was his integrity, so 
rare his faithfulness, that he won not only the confidence 
but the highest esteem of his employers. When too old to 
longer continue in the discharge of his duties, they showed 
their appreciation of their trusty servant by retiring him 
on a pension. 

Soon after removing to Blantyre he had also succeeded, 
as he had hoped, in getting positions in the factory for his 
sons as well as for himself — positions which they filled with 
honor and trust, following the example so nobly set by 
the father. They remained in the employ of the Messrs. 
Monteith until the war with France broke out, when they 
all, with the exception of Dr. Livingstone's father, entered 
the army. The latter, having married in the meantime, 
now settled down as a grocery merchant, doing business 
in a small w r ay. 

David's tribute to his father at this period of his life was 
that he was "too honest ever to grow rich." Here we 
also have a glimpse of the real kindliness of heart that was 
surely his, since he was never known to turn away a fellow- 
creature in distress, but, on the other hand, would respond 
to the appeal, though to his own hurt. It was this constant 
trust of people, " whose necessities were greater than their 
ability or desire to pay," 1hat added more and more each 
year to his own financial embarrassment; for, as has been 
said, he was only doing business on a limited scale. This 
2 



18 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



pressure finally drove him to the necessity of putting his 
children out to work, even at tender ages. 

It was thus that David entered the mills as piecer when 
only ten years old. It was hard work for so young a child, 
the loug confinement proving more wearisome than any 
thing else. He had to work steadily from six in the morn- 
ing until eight at night, with only a short intermission for 
dinner. 

How many lads thus circumstanced would have surren- 
dered themselves unreservedly to the drudgery of their po- 
sition, hopeless and careless as to any thing for the future 
save a life of just such unremitting toil as this! But not 
so David Livingstone. While not despising his humble 
surroundings, nor yet rebellious against the hardness of his 
lot, there was nevertheless born within him-from the mo- 
ment his hands knew daily toil the pure purpose to raise 
himself step by step to higher and broader levels, and to 
make of his life in the end that which would be an honor to 
God, a satisfaction to himself, and a blessing to his fellow- 
men. 

Thus within the heart of the obscure factory boy, toiling 
over his spindles in the mills at Blantyre, were planted the 
first seed of that steadfast and ennobling resolve that gave 
to the w T orld its greatest Christian missionary and most suc- 
cessful explorer. 

He was no dreamer, be it understood— no loiterer, who 
spent "hours by the way," though that way were but the 
loom above which he bent, building castles for the future 
out of the gorgeous fabrics of fancy, or rearing them of 
such material as speculation gives. It was no dream that 
had taken such full possession of him, but a pure and stead- 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 19 

fast desire. Believing in God with all his heart and soul, 
as well as in the power and efficacy of prayer, he also be- 
lieved it possible to bring about the accomplishment he so 
ardently desired through the very strength and earnestness 
of his petitions. God was with him- though invisible, yet 
supreme — and God would hear his prayers. 

Thus, boy as he was, he threw the whole force of his ni£- 
ged nature into this one belief, and clung to it — never 
faltering, never doubting that in his own good time, and out 
of the abundance of his mighty compassion, God would 
send the fulfillment. Until then he could wait; and better 
still, he could work, though the work was of the lowliest 
kind. Ah! show me the soul that has taken unto itself so 
mighty and so clean a purpose— that upon its most endur- 
ing foundations and within the firmest fortresses of its de- 
fenses has built such a hope, such a faith— and I will whis- 
per of a God that never yet let such a trust go unrequited. 
"According to thy faith so shall it be." Thus spoke the 
Master, and as steadfast as heaven itself is the prom se these 
words contain. 

One incident of this period of Livingstone's life is espe- 
cially noticeable and most commendable, as it shows us 
more plainly than perhaps any thing else could have done 
the faithful and sturdy heart that beat underneath the 
coarse jacket, as well as gives us a strong and forcible illus- 
tration of those filial traits of character that formed so close 
a part of himself. The^prst half-crown he ever earned he 
laid proudly and fondly in his mother's lap, beseeching her 
that she would at once expend it in something exclusively 
for herself, since, he assured her, nothing would give him 
greater happiness than to see her do this. 



20 LIFE OF DAV.D LIVINGSTONE. 



What education Livingstone had previous to his enter- 
ing the mills had been acquired at irregular intervals at the 
village school. This only gave him an intense longing for 
more knowledge, and with a portion of the small earnings he 
received at the factory he began attending a night-school, 
which was kept up in part by the proprietors of the mills. 
Not content with this, he purchased a Latin grammar: this 
he managed to study at odd snatches as he walked back 
and forth in front of his work. 

David had always been a plodding and persevering 
lad. Indeed, his habit of sticking determinately to a pur- 
pose was proverbial in the household. His perseverance is 
described by one of his biographers as of the kind that is 
" bred in the bone," and consequently formed an integral 
part of his organization. When an object of attainment 
came in view, there was no flagging of the invincible will 
until victory had crowned his endeavors. So it was with 
the determined youth who took upon himself the mas- 
tery of the Latin language in the odd snatches between his 
work; so, in turn, with the resolute young student whose 
scanty means did not deter him from the undertaking of a 
medical course, finished at last only through the most indom- 
itable effort; so with the man whose steady purpose would 
acknowledge no defeat, all the while drawing nearer and 
nearer its realization — the Christianizing and the opening 
up to commerce of a whole savage continent. This was a 
work that no one man — nay, nor a thousand men— could 
hope to accomplish in a life-time, yet he set about it with 
a resoluteness "bred in the bone/ 1 like that sturdy persever- 
ance of his, and nurtured in a heart that, first assured of 
God's blessing, never felt discomfiture. Even with all his 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 21 



courage and will, he recognized that this was to be the work 
not of one but of many a life-time; yet with a faith that 
knew no faltering, and an unswerving reliance upon that 
higher Power which guided and directed him, he went 
hopefully on to the accomplishment of the part he felt to be 
his. And such a part! 

Could the century but give us another David Living- 
stone, little need would there be for the thousand men, 
" preachers and prophets in a heathen land ; " for, a very host 
in himself, how the glorious work would speed on to its ful- 
fillment ! O ! to think of it — a whole race conquered and 
engirdled by the chains of Christian brotherhood! two hun- 
dred million swarthy faces upturned to catch the glory of 
Christ's love! two hundred million once savage tongues 
repeating o'er and o'er the name of the King who has come, 
is gone, and is to come again in the infinite power and splen- 
dor of his majesty! Could the earth afford a grander or a 
more soul-enkindling picture? God send us the Living- 
stone; but failing this, send us the men — yes, and the wom- 
en too — and speed the glorious day when the heathen shall 
cry unto thee as one man, and when from "the rivers to the 
ends of the earth " all the nations shall give thee praise! 

As a proof of that remarkable perseverance so fittingly 
described as "bred in the bone," David, when nine years 
old, received from his Sunday-school teacher a copy of the 
New Testament for repeating the one hundred and nine- 
teenth Psalm on two successive evenings, with only five er- 
rors, and these of the most trivial kind. Never was a book 
more cherished than that one, and never was one more in- 
dustriously studied. That he found it as " bread to his 
soul" and as "a lamp to his feet," many incidents of his 



22 _ LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



after life proved. With him as with Daniel Webster, from 
the time that as a child at his mother's knee he had first 
learned " to lisp verses from the sacred writings," to the 
close of his long and useful career, they were his " daily 
study and vigilant contemplation/' 

Livingstone was an insatiate reader/ devouring almost 
every book that came in his way. I say "" almost every 
book" advisedly, fartjiere was one exception. He would 
never read novels, declaring that they were perhaps not so 
hurtful, but. profitless, since they showed him nothing of 
"death how to, r die, nor of life Iioav to live." His great 
fondness was for books of a scientific character; next, his- 
tories and works of travel. Much of his reading during 
the years at the factory was done, as his Latin had been 
studied, between the intervals of Ins work. As these inter- 
vals could not atvbest be more than a moment in length, 
we can form some idea as to the full extent of his opportu- 
nities. 

When about sixteen years of age, Livingstone was pro- 
moted from a piecer to a spinner. The advancement not 
only raised his wages, but also slightly increased the inter- 
vals between his work — those golden moments of opportu- 
nity, the value of which he so well knew. Although mere 
fractions of time, that would seem useless to the idler and 
the dreamer, Livingstone regarded them as precious pearls 
to be slipped swiftly yet carefully and deftly along the 
string, with good to the slipper at every touch. After all, 
these intervals were but snatches, for the machinery of the 
cotton-mills of those days did not have the reliability and 
the many self-acting properties that the new mills of to-day 
have. Much that the looms now do for themselves the spin- 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 23 



ners of that time had to do for the looms. Hence, there 
was not then any thing like the opportunity there is now 
for the looking away of eyes or the keeping away of hands. 
But, in spite of these many obstacles, Livingstone managed 
to catch sentence after sentence as he passed and repassed 
in front of the book so ingeniously fixed upon a portion of 
his spinning-jenny. 

At six o'clock in the morning Livingstone was in his 
place at the mill; at twelve there was a short intermission 
for dinner; at eight the great bell clanged, and the day's 
work was over. With just time to change his clothes and 
to eat his supper, by half-past eight he was in his seat at the 
night-school. Here he remained until ten, then returned 
home to read and study up to twelve — often to a later hour 
— when his mother, fearing for his health, would literally 
snatch the book away from him and run him off to bed. 
None but a most rugged and hardy constitution could have 
held out against such wear and tear, and this Livingstone 
fortunately had. It stood him in good turn now — it up- 
held him again and again amidst the hardships and suffer- 
ings of the savage desert. 

In this manner — during the hours of the night at home, 
and in the intervals of his work at the factory- — Livingstone 
read many of the works of the classics, even Virgil and 
Horace. Often afterward he used to say he had a better 
understanding ^of them at eighteen than he had at forty- 
eight. 

In his search for knowledge Livingstone did not con- 
fine himself to the reading of books: no one eyer should. 
In time Nature became his teacher: her vast store-houses 
were his class-rooms; her manifold works were his classics. 



24 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



From these he learned, as he never could have learned from 
books or men, lessons sweet and fresh and pure, bearing the 
imprint of the Great Teachers own master-mind. From 
the golden heart of the lily, in the glowing color of the 
wild-rose, in the imperial bending of the blades of the tall 
grasses, in the form and motion of the clouds, in the 
rhythmic flow of the brook or river, in the burst of melody 
from the bird's throat, in the distillation of the dew-drop, 
there spoke to him voices as w 7 ith countless tongues; and 
each proclaimed eloquently the lesson it had been sent to 
teach. Who would not learn of such instructors? Who 
would not stop to catch the music of a language as old as 
the stars and as clear and beautiful as the blue vault that 
shuts them from our view in the day-dawn? Hear this 
great teacher, you who would have clean hands, and fresh 
faces, and laughing voices, and healthy minds, and pure 
hearts: "I am Nature. Come and learn of me, and 
through me of my God." 

In the company of his two brothers, John and Charles — 
at such times as he could spare from his other studies and 
researches — Livingstone used to go roaming over the hills 
in search of plant specimens. Then he took to studying 
the fishes, their haunts and their habits ; next, the birds and 
the various reptiles. Not satisfied with this, he went farther 
still, and began digging into the earth in search of certain 
fossil remains he had heard were numerous in that part of 
the country. In their rambles one day the brothers came 
to a quarry that had been worked for awhile and then 
abandoned. With exclamations of delight, David began 
examining the many curious specimens of fossil shells 
strew T ed about — specimens which the workmen had from 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 25 



time to time excavated from the yielding walls of lime- 
stone. Soon he picked up a large fragment of the lime- 
stone that had been detached some time, and was of the 
hardness of rock. Firmly imbedded in the center was a 
large and beautiful shell, perfect in outline. It struck Da- 
vid's attention at once. " How did this shell come into the 
rock?" he asked of the old quarryman who was at that 
moment looking in upon them. " Why," returned the man, 
" when God made the rock he put the shell in it, of course." 
Yes, "of course." It all sounded plausible enough, but 
would it bear the test of careful inquiry? The quarryman, 
at least, had never given the matter a thought before. To 
him a rock was a rock, and a shell a shell, and one was as 
likely to be in a place as the other. It never occurred to 
him that the proper home of the shell was in the sea, and 
not here imbedded in this limestone cliff; but it did occur 
to Livingstone, and with this thought many more came 
crowding into his mind. Best of all, he did not let it end 
with his thoughts. Plausible as had been the old man's 
theory, Livingstone knew it would not do. Something with- 
in him told him that. But why wouldn't it do? This is 
what he resolved to discover; and he did discover it. 

Thus the finding of the fossil shell in the depths of the 
old quarry led Livingstone to the study of geology — a study 
that stood him well years after in the heart of wonderful 
Africa, and helped him on in the many valuable discover- 
ies and researches which without such aid he would doubt- 
less never have made. 

An incident that occurred during this period of ram- 
bling over the Scottish hills will forcibly illustrate a strik- 
ing point in Livingstone's character. It was a rigid old 



26 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 

Scotch custom of his father s to lock the door at night-fall, 
by which time every child, large and small, was expected 
to be within the house. Each one knew this rule only too 
well, and none as yet had dared to infringe it. One after- 
noon David had been out on a ramble alone. Absorbed in 
his quest for some particular plant-specimen, he did not 
notice the flight of time: thus at the going down of the sun 
he was some distance from his father's house. With alarm 
he found that he could hardly hope to reach home, even 
with his best efforts, before the closing of the door. Never- 
theless, hoping against hope, he set off at his most rapid 
pace. It was as he had feared. On arriving at home he 
found the door fast barred. He did not call or make a 
noise or outcry of any kind. Having knowledge of his 
fathers firm adherence to this rule of closing the door, he 
prepared himself to make the best of the present occasion. 
Drawing a piece of bread from his pocket, he sat upon the 
steps, ready to be content with that instead of the meal he 
had expected, as well as to spend the night there in uncom- 
plaining submission. But it was not so to be. The ever- 
watchful mother soon found him, opened the door for him, 
bade him enter, and cried over him, as such mothers will 
do, especially when they choose to look upon the object of 
their tears as badly treated. Ever after that, even when 
he had grown to man's estate, David Livingstone was in time 
for the closing of the door c 



CHAPTER II. 

HIS HOME LIFE — THE TENDER REGARD SHOWN HIS SISTERS— HIS 
KEEN SENSE OP THE HUMOROUS — A LAUGHABLE EPISODE-^-THE 
SPIRITUAL CHANGE THAT CAME TO HIM — HE ENTERS THE UNI- 
VERSITY AS A MEDICAL STUDENT — HIS DETERMINATION TO BE- 
COME A MISSIONARY. 

IN spite of the generally austere rule of the father, it 
would have been impossible to find a happier or more 
contented family than that of the Livingstones. Consider- 
ation and kindliness for others ruled their every impulse; 
love spoke in their every act. Contention and strife, such 
as mar the peace and pleasantness of the fairest homes, came 
not near their abode. Harsh words and bitter speeches, fret- 
fulness and peevish complainings, were unknown there. 

Though he was unyielding in the enforcement of those 
principles which he deemed just and beneficial to the grow- 
ing body and mind, Neil Livingstone, the father, was not 
the man to look frowningly upon the sports and innocent 
amusements of childhood. Harmless recreations, cheery 
pastimes, even the more noisy games, were not prohibited. 
Often around the broad fireplace in the evenings the father 
himself took part in these plays. But the central figure of 
all this happy sport — the one governing spirit, up to whom 
all the others came in time to look, and to depend upon for 
the choicest bits of the evening's enjoyment — was David. 
He was never too tired, never too much occupied with his 
own pursuits and pleasures to refuse them the share he 
could contribute to their happiness. 

It is no wonder, then, that he was the favorite of that 

(27) 



28 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



happy home, even where all the other brothers and sisters 
were so well beloved. But he w 7 as their idol, the one upon 
whom the combined treasures of their deepest affection 
were unstintingly poured. Without David no home even- 
ing would have seemed like itself, no enjoyment complete. 
To his sisters he was the gentlest and most courteous of 
brothers. Evening after evening they would watch for his 
coming, and greet his approach with the happiest of faces. 
It used to be a custom of his on Saturday evenings — the 
only evenings of the week-days when he was free from his 
school duties — to tell them of such things as he thought 
would not only amuse but instruct them, In this manner 
he had a school of his own at home — a school in which the 
lessons taught carried with them something more than the 
knowledge one is apt to glean from books alone. In the 
after years his sisters often spoke of the feelings of rare de- 
light with which they looked forward to these Saturday 
evenings at home. Kind were the thoughts he gave to oth- 
ers, and in return kind their thoughts to him. 

The heart is a garden — our thoughts the flowers 

That spring into fruitful life: 
Have a care that in sowing there fall no seed 

From the weed of cruel strife. 

O loving words are not hard to say, 

If the heart be loving too! 
And the kinder the thoughts you give to others 

The kinder their thoughts to you. 

As solid and matter-of-fact as was Dr. Livingstone's char- 
acter in most respects, he had a keen sense of humor and a 
faculty for the ready enjoyment of many of the lighter 
things of life. An amusing situation, a ludicrous blending 
of the seemly and unseemly, struck him irresistibly. 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 29 



While out fishing with his brother Charles one day, he 
caught a large salmon that weighed several pounds. It 
seems that they had not gone prepared for fishing; and 
having no bag or receptacle of any kind in which to place 
the fish, they were for some time at a loss as to what they 
should do with it. Finally a happy thought struck David. 

" I tell you what, Charles/' he said, with a merry twinkle 
of the eye: " we shall have to make a fish-bag of one leg of 
your trousers. There is plenty of room for both the leg 
and the salmon," with a suggestive glance in the direction 
of a somewhat baggy and spacious half of the boy's panta- 
loons. 

They proceeded to make a fish-bag of Charles's trousers 
leg. Charles himself offered no remonstrance, but seemed 
greatly to enjoy the novel operation. The fish was at once 
hoisted and dropped into place, neither the trousers nor the 
leg that inhabited that portion of them offering any resist- 
ance, since there was indeed, as Livingstone had declared, 
plenty of room for both, with a surplus besides. A leather 
string was next tied around the garment at the boy's ankle, 
so as to prevent the fish from slipping out. In this manner 
they went through the village, where the unnatural and 
apparently swollen condition of Charles's leg attracted con- 
siderable attention, as well as called forth a great deal of 
commiseration, from the feminine portion of the town espe- 
cially. Many good women ran after them, their faces filled 
with pity, and all crying, "Poor lad! poor lad! what could 
have happened to him?" Each had a remedy of her own 
to suggest, warranted to bring the swelling down in the least 
number of days, and each was clamorous that he should pay 
attention to her, and promise to give her remedy the first 
trial. It was with difficulty that they got through the vil- 



30 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



la^e. The remembrance of this adventure furnished the 
brothers with amusement for months afterward. 

If David Livingstone was the idol of his sisters, he was the 
hero of his brothers as well. They looked up to him in every 
thing, relied steadfastly upon his opinions, and were never 
happier than when following him on his rambles. He was 
never cross nor harsh to them, nor did he ever seek to im- 
press them with a sense of his own superior attainments and 
abilities, but was always gentle, patient, and considerate. If 
they asked a foolish question, he took time to consider the 
best answer to give them, without appearing to see how T 
very foolish the question was. He never once willingly hurt 
their feelings. At their most ludicrous blunders, if made in 
good faith, he would refrain from laughing; and in every 
way he encouraged them to talk of themselves, and to ex- 
press such ideas and opinions as they might have. Between 
the brothers there was always the utmost good comradeship. 

When he was nineteen years of age, a great spiritual 
change came over David Livingstone. He had always been 
an earnest and a believing lad. From his infancy he had 
been taught to revere the name of God. He would no more 
have forgotten to say his prayers morning and evening than 
he would have neglected to bathe his face or to take his 
place at meals. From his mother he had imbibed the most 
sacred regard for holy things, from his father an unswerving 
fidelity to the higher principles of integrity and truth. He 
read his Bible daily; he went to a house of worship regu- 
larly each Sabbath ; he made every effort to live up to God's 
commandments. But with all this there had been some- 
thing lacking- — an experience and a knowledge that far sur- 
passed any thing of which he had as yet formed an idea. 
What was it? The living closer to God each day that 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 31 



passed; the constant realization of his presence in the heart; 
the ready doing of his will — not through fear, nor yet from 
a sense of duty, but through love — which is his children's 
certain assurance of their full acceptance with him. In 
time all this came to David Livingstone; and as the light 
grew stronger and more beautiful day by day, so did those 
desires and aspirations that had first come to the little 
"piecer" boy, bending over lfis tasks at the mill, now be- 
gin to shape themselves into firmer and clearer mold. Then 
he had merely longed to reach some higher and nobler 
plane of action. Nothing definite had fixed itself within 
his mind. Just what he was to be had occupied no positive 
place in his thoughts, only as it was held by the pure pur- 
pose to make of his life something ennobling to himself and 
of benefit to his fellow-men. But he saw 7 it all more plainly 
now. The light had come, and with it the end of all doubt 
and perplexity, and the beginning of a faith and love that 
pointed out the way as clearly as though the noonday sun 
shone upon it. What could be more ennobling to himself, or 
bring greater blessings to mankind, than the earnest and 
thoroughly consecrated life of a missionary ? Nothing ; nor 
could there be " a grander place for man to die than where 
he died for man." In such hope and in such desire God 
would surely uphold him. 

He was now earning good wages at the factory, or what 
were considered good wages at that time. His resolution in 
regard to his future career thus formed, Livingstone deter- 
mined to devote a part of the proceeds of his labor to the 
taking of a medical course at the university in Glasgow. 
He well knew the benefit that such knowledge would be to 
him and to others in the life he had mapped out. To be 
able to administer to the ills of body as well as of mind 



82 UFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



was to carry to poor stricken humanity a dual blessing. 
Thus he worked during the summer, saving every j)enny 
that he could from his earnings in order to take the medical 
course during the winter. Often it seemed to the brave 
toiler that, with all his economy and self-denial, he must 
abandon his desires. The fees were not only heavy in com- 
parison to his light purse, but there were other expenses upon 
which he had not calculated. But in the face of all obsta- 
cles he determinately pushed ahead, asking help from no 
one, and receiving none, save once from a brother, who, 
knowing of his straits, insisted on loaning him a small 
amount. 

That this life of hardy toil and jDersistent application was 
neither irksome nor distasteful to him, his own words show: 
"Looking back now at that life of toil, I cannot but feel 
thankful that it formed such a material part of my early 
education ; and were it possible I should like to begin life 
over again in the same lowly style, and to pass through the 
same lowly training." Brave and telling words these to 
come from a man who had known every up and down of 
life, from the lowest to the highest. How keen the sting of 
their reproach should be to those useless and effortless ex- 
istences that are not only a burden to themselves but a mill- 
stone about the necks of others! 

In order to attend the lectures" at the university, Living- 
stone had, through the first course, to walk to Glasgow' and 
back each day, a total of eighteen miles. Though it was 
wintery weather, and often of the severest kind, and though 
Ills shoes were not always of the best, nor his attire of the 
warmest, no word of complaint ever passed his lips. He 
was only too glad of the opportunity to take his place in 
the clasa-room. What were bodily pains and discomforts, 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 33 



even the pangs of hunger and cold, in comparison to this 
precious privilege? It was noticeable that, no matter what 
might go amiss with him — whether on the road or at the uni- 
versity — no shadow of his own troubles or perplexities did he 
ever allow to fall upon his happy family circle. As in the old 
days at the mill, his home-coming was now joyously hailed. 
At length the sublime patience, the indomitable courage, 
the resolute will of Livingstone had their reward : the course 
was finished, and the long-desired diploma his. Another 
point of his many-sided and thoroughly strong and fearless 
nature came to light with the taking of this diploma. While 
undergoing an examination, the result of which was to prove 
his fitness to receive this badge of a Avork faithfully done, 
Livingstone dared to differ in opinion with the examining 
board in regard to a certain subject that was under discus- 
sion. This finally led to quite an extended argument, in 
which Livingstone acquitted himself triumphantly. The 
board was angry and resentful, of course; but its members 
could not deny him his diploma, as they doubtless would 
have liked to do. In afterward speaking of this encoun- 
ter to a friend, Livingstone somewhat dryly remarked: 
"Perhaps it would have been the wiser plan, after all, not 
to have had any opinions of my own." A " perhaps " it 
merely was with Livingstone, since those who knew him 
well knew that he was not the one to allow his convictions 
and opinions to be swayed and controlled by those of other 
people. When an idea came to him, or a new thought 
presented itself, he was always fearless in giving expression 
to it. Never could his opinions and beliefs be purchased at 
any price. He was ever himself— bold, steadfast, and un- 
flinching in a stand he had once taken from a conviction of 

right. 
3 



34 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



Now that his medical course was completed, Livingstone 
felt that the time had come to put into active effort the pur- 
pose he had all along kept resolutely before him. His*first 
thought was of the mission-fields in China. A few brave 
spirits were already there, and the work had begun. How- 
ever, before he could carry his designs into execution the 
outbreak of the Opium War with China took place, and he 
was compelled to abandon all hope in that direction, at 
least for awhile. 

Africa next presented itself. It is true that up to this 
time it had been a country almost unknown; but so much 
the better, thought Livingstone; so much greater the need 
of a fearless, determined spirit to go and find out what was 
to be found, and to do his share of what was to be done. 
Though the London Missionary Society — the one great soci- 
ety of its kind at that day — had as yet contributed but little 
toward the sending of missionaries to the Dark Continent, 
one was there the fame of whose wonderful discoveries and 
labors was beginning to reach the ears of the Christian world. 
This was the Eev. Robert Moffat, who many years before 
had fearlessly set sail for that savage and hostile land. 

Livingstone now offered himself to the London Mission- 
ary Society for work in Africa. His application was at once 
accepted; yet, that he might be the better prepared for 
what was before him, he was not at once assigned to a field, 
but instead sent to a missionary training establishment at 
Chipping Ongar, in Essex, which was presided over by the 
Rev. Mr. Cecil. Here he was subjected to all kinds of hard 
labor, such as grinding corn, sawing boards, felling trees, 
chopping wood, ditching, gardening — in fact, he was re- 
quired to do any and every thing that was calculated to 
fit him for the rough life before him. Here he also prac- 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. o) 



ticed featsof walking, usually testing his powers of endurance 
to the utmost. Once he walked to and from London in one 
day, a distance of fifty miles in all. He was completely ex- 
hausted, of course — especially as he had taken little, if any, 
food on the way; but who can doubt that it prepared him 
just that much more for the terrible marches endured with 
such courage and fortitude under the blistering sun and 
through the scorching sands of Africa? 




(36) 



CHAPTER III; 

A QUESTION THAT VEXED THE WORED-THE SOURCES OF THE 
NIEE-THE BRUCE, SPEKE, AND BAKER EXPEDITIONS-ENGLAND 
TRIUMPHANT— THE SPIRIT THAT MOVED LIVINGSTONE. 



FOR four thousand years the same question had vexed 
and perplexed the whole civilized world : " Where is the 
source of the Nile? " Age after age men had stood upon its 
banks and watched its placid current, or again from afar the 
swollen and angry cataract of its annual overflow— still the 
same baffling inquiry, " Whence doth it come?" Persians, 
Greeks, Egyptians, even the Hindoo from the sacred shades 
of his temples beside the Ganges, had attempted to solve the 
mystery, and each in turn had failed. The noble facades 
of the palaces, the imperial shafts of the obelisks, the costly 
domes of the temples looking down in stately grandeur upon 
the Nile, had alike crumbled and fallen into dust; cities 
had arisen, flourished, and were swept away; generation 
had succeeded generation — still onward rolled the mighty 
river, as though it would go on forever. But whence did 
it come? What were the causes governing the mystery of 
its annual overflow? As regularly as he looked for the 
coming of the sun in the morning did the old Egyptian, at 
the right season, watch for the rising of the Nile; and as 
little as he knew about the laws governing the one, still lees 
did he know of the causes controlling the other. The mys- 
tery had from year to year puzzled the great and wise Menea 
himself. In order to solve it, if possible, he finally sent an 

(37) 



38 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



army of men into the almost impenetrable wilderness. But 
few of them ever came back, those who did come having no 
light to give. Next Cambyses, the sturdy and dauntless 
warrior, who had failed in little else, undertook the search 
with a thousand men. Not one of these ever returned to 
bear witness of the fate of the expedition. Even Alexan- 
der the Great, in .the midst of his. many conquests, stopped 
to give more than a thought to the possibility of making 
this one, which after all might in many respects prove the 
greatest of his achievements. Unlike Menes and Cambyses, 
he went himself with his army. The renown was too tempt- 
ing to be shared by his men alone. But he bent his course 
in an eastward direction, and went into India: there he came 
upon the Indus pouring from its mountain sources, and he 
clapped his hands and shouted aloud, for he believed that he 
had found the head- waters of the magic river. But afterward 
he discovered his mistake, and we may well imagine how 
very crest-fallen he must have felt. Years later the mighty 
Julius Caesar was heard to remark " that there might, after 
all, be more glory in the discovery of the source of the Nile 
than in the winning of many battles.' , He too made prep- 
aration to go in search of the baffling sources of the myste- 
rious river; but luckily for him, as well as for his splendid 
soldiers, the enterprise was abandoned. 

Thus the mystery, and the doubt, and the perplexity, and 
the search went on ; and from nation to nation, from gener- 
ation to generation, from father to son, was the same ques- 
tion handed down : " Whence eometh it ? " 

On the fourth day of November, 1770, James Bruce, a 
Scotchman, stood in the middle of a small spring in the 
mountain fastnesses of Central Africa, and, with much ex- 
citement and great hilarity of spirits, drank to the health of 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 89 



the King (George III.) f Void a cup of cocoa-nut shell. These 
noisy demonstrations arose from the fact that Bruce believed 
he had found the true source of the Nile, and had at last 
settled the vexed question of centuries. He was mistaken, 
in the main, as he himself discovered. Still there was honor 
in the find, since what he had come upon, though not really 
the head- waters of the Nile proper, w 7 as the source of its most 
important tributary, the Blue Nile. 

In olden times the Egyptian, along with the problem that 
still remained unsolved in his mind, had a belief that the 
source of so wonderful a river could lie in no other place 
than in the great basin of some mighty lake. But where 
was this lake? In what portion of the yet undiscovered 
country did it lie? A whisper, that it had been seen and 
bathed in by a party of hunters, once came floating up the 
river even as high as the old city of Alexandria, where the 
mystic waters joined those of the blue Mediterranean ; yet 
just where the whisper first started, or bywhoni it had been 
borne along, no one seemed to know. Centuries afterward 
(in the year 1858), an English explorer, Captain Speke, 
returned to his country from a series of extraordinary ad- 
ventures and discoveries in the African wildernesses, de- 
claring that the mystery of the Nile source was a mystery 
no longer, for he had found it in a lake to which he had 
given the name "Victoria Nyanza" in honor of his Queen. 
"If that be true, then, Speke," said the President of the 
Royal Geographical Society, to whom he had made his dis- 
covery known, "we must send you back for further investi- 
gation, and to establish the claim. M And send him back 
they did, but not alone. This time he was accompanied by 
one Captain Grant, who was also an Englishman. After 
many adventures and great perils, these brave explorers 



40 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



finally returned, each steadfastly declaring that in the broad 
and magnificent basin of the Victoria Nyanza the Nile did 
indeed have its source. How all England rejoiced! At 
last the mystery of ages had been cleared up, and by one of 
her sons! 

But was the problem fully solved? Had Speke indeed 
found the real source of the Nile? No, not quite. While 
at Lake Victoria Nyanza, Speke and Grant had heard from 
the natives of another lake which, while not near so large, 
was equally as interesting and beautiful. They had at once 
set out for the point indicated, but failing to procure a proper 
guide, and many things pressing their speedy return to En- 
gland, they gave up the search, believing that they had been 
misinformed. However, before leaving the country they 
confided what knowledge they had gained in regard to the 
lake to one of their countrymen, Mr. Samuel Baker — after- 
ward the great Sir Samuel Baker — who was at that time 
with his wife in the heart of Africa. 

Baker renewed the search for the lake, his wife bravely 
sharing in every hardship and danger. At last, one morn- 
ing, when he was least expecting it, Baker came upon the 
lake. He found it a wonderful and beautiful body of water, 
as the natives had declared it to be, but he found it some- 
thing better still — the other and last remaining source of 
the Nile. Baker named the new-found lake "Albert," in 
honor of the good and gentle Prince Consort. 

And so it was all cleared up at last, and there was no 
cause for further mystery. The magic river, as might have 
been supposed from its volume and from the nature of its 
annual rise and overflow, had more than one source — it had 
two; really three, looked at in one light. And all of these 
sources had been discovered by Englishmen. No wonder 



LIFE Of DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 41 



the old mother-country felt proud and jubilant! In the 
midst of the spring whence the Blue Nile issues at Geesh, 
Bruce had stood drinking King George's health — the first 
white man that ever gazed upon its surface; eighty-eight 
years later, Captain Speke had found the waters of the 
White Nile, or Nile proper, flowing from the basin of the 
Victoria Nyanza; and now Baker — the last, but by no 
means least, of the great trio — bad come upon the remain- 
ing source of the magic river in the bosom of the Albert 
Nyanza. 

Even before Rpeke had found the first source of the White 
Nile, the call to go to this same wonderful country had come 
to David Livingstone. It may be that amidst all his noble 
resolutions and self-sacrificing purposes he was not unmind- 
ful of the many allurements and attractions of this strange, 
wild land. Perhaps it might be his lot, too, to make won- 
derful discoveries, and to come upon queer people, and to 
see strange sights, the description of which would prove of 
interest and be the source of great instruction to his coun- 
trymen. Perhaps, also, it might be given him to settle cer- 
tain vexed questions in regard to the geography of the 
" Dark Continent," and to clear up many perplexities con- 
cerning its climate, productions, etc. While admitting that 
such hopes and such aspirations were doubtless his, we, on 
the other hand, feel assured that something nobler and 
higher still led David Livingstone into the African jungles. 
His was to be a mission to the ignorant, the unhappy, and 
the dying. Though he did go to see and to learn, in order 
to give to the scientific world much useful information of 
which it stood in need, yet he was to be himself a teacher — 
the bearer of "glad tidings/- The many phases of this wild 
and picturesque country he was to open up to the curious 



42 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



eyes of the outside world, yet to the sight of its own savage 
inhabitants he was to lay bare something grander and more 
beautiful still — the glorious truths of that Book of all books, 
the Bible. More, he was to tell them of that Saviour who 
had died for them, and through whom they were to have 
an everlasting inheritance in their Fathers house of many 
mansions. 

O that there could be found more with Livingstone's zeal, 
and Livingstone's faith, and Livingstone's vigor! O that 
others of those who, merely through curiosity, or the love 
of adventure or of the world's praise, are led into the heart 
of that savage country, could but go there, carrying with 
them even a small portion of that spirit which prompted 
Livingstone to his other and higher mission ' 



CHAPTER IV. 



Livingstone's arrival at cape town — the popular theory 
concerning africa— the trip across the country to kur17- 
man — he hears of a wonderful lake — a journey far- 
ther into the interior — his reception by the beciiuanas 
—the first sowing of the good seed— meets with bubi— a 
shocking occurrence — poor sekoml's troublesome heart 
— the visit to the bakaa — his first sermon — discovers an 
iron manufacturing people — an amusing predicament — 
the return to kuruman. 



AFTER an uneventful voyage of three months* dura- 
tion, Livingstone landed at Cape Town, in Southern 
Africa. This was in March, 1840, when he was twenty- 
seven years old. Previous to his departure for Africa 
but little was known of the country. Neither Speke nor 
Grant nor Baker had penetrated it. In spite of the infor- 
mation which Bruce, Mungo Park, and others had given of 
their travels, the whole country still remained to the greater 
portion of the outside world a dark and abandoned corner 
of the earth, a continent of heathenism in which they had 
no part or parcel. All sorts of terrible theories were held 
concerning it. There were ghouls and dwarfs, giants and 
genii, and every imaginable kind of horrible monster, that 
were constantly prowling about and preying upon the more 
peaceful portion of the inhabitants. The whole face of the 
country was regarded as an arid and almost barren waste, 
where human life could hardly exist, and then only through 
the most miraculous interventions and by the most desper- 

(43) 



44 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



ate shifts. Deadly serpents crawled on every side, wild 
beasts destroyed hundreds of poor unfortunates, while the 
rays of the sun scorched and blistered every thing that they 
touched. Even the more intelligent and better read be- 
lieved to some extent in these wild stories. One rather am- 
bitious Cambridge student had recently gone so far as to 
write a prize poem in which he made the Sahara the scene of 
the battle of Armageddon. And the people had actually 
applauded him for it! No wonder the public mind w T as so 
fanciful and unsettled on the subject, since the very ge- 
ographies themselves were silent, the whole country lying 
on their maps a perfect blank, with the exception of the 
Sahara. 

It is no w r onder, then, that many of young Livingstone's 
friends dreaded to see him depart for this savage country. 
It would be little less than a miracle if he ever came back 
alive — thus they thought and declared. It was especially 
trying to his mother; still, noble woman that she was, she 
would have been the last one to deter him from his purpose. 
The brave missionary himself had no misgivings. God was 
with him, and thus protected he would be as safe in the 
heart of that savage country as in his own peaceful home. 
This implicit trust in the Almighty arm was one of the 
foundation-stones of David Livingstone's character. 

Remaining at Cape Town but a short while, Livingstone 
went by ship to Algoa Bay, whence he set out across the 
country for Kuruman, the mission-station of Mr. Moffat, 
On this his first African journey occurred an incident that 
showed the stuff of which our future traveler w r as made. As 
he was crossing the Orange River, his team of oxen became 
unruly and ran the wagon aground in one of the shallow 
places. To add further to the trouble, the brutes themselves 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 45 



got more and more out of order; or, as Livingstone himself 
described it, " some of them with their heads where their 
tails ought to have been, and others again with their tails 
stuck through the yokes where their necks ought to have 
been." Every moment it appeared as if they would over- 
turn the wagon into the river. However, in a little while 
Livingstone, with a few dexterous movements, succeeded in 
getting the oxen into place again, and the wagon up the bank 
and out of danger. 

Notwithstanding the many drawbacks, they found travel- 
ing very pleasant, in the main. To Livingstone, especially, 
it was a novel and varied experience. He liked it, he said, 
because there was " so much freedom in the African man- 
ners." At night they pitched their tents wherever it might 
please them ; made their fire, swung the kettle over it, and 
then went out in search of game for their supper. 

The scenery along the route was exceedingly fine. Beau- 
tiful trees bent their luxuriant growths above them; hum- 
ming-birds and tiny insects of every description, with flashing 
wings, flew in and out among the mimosas and the low-grow- 
ing acacias; the stately palms dipped their long, graceful 
fronds in lovely undulations as the breezes swept over them ; 
the wild flowers were numerous and of the most brilliant 
colors, while the dense jungle-grass, fresh and cool and in- 
viting, stretched away on every side. It is true that the 
sun was often unbearably hot overhead, that every now and 
then a hissing serpent presented itself in their path, and 
more than one wild beast threatened them with its terrible 
roar: still these were considered but slight discomforts in 
the face of so much that was pleasing. 

The distance across the country to Kuril man was one 
thousand miles. The fatigue of such a journey by ox-team 



46 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



was necessarily great; but not once did Livingstone really 
tire. There was too much to keep his interest alive and to 
constantly put a spur upon his energies, even if they had 
flagged. 

On this journey he at first endeavored to master the lan- 
guage of the natives. Each of the tribes, he well knew, had 
a peculiar dialect of its own, but the majority of them were 
similar in most features. He knew the difficulties that 
would impede his way until he had learned to address the 
people in their own familiar speech. In his efforts in this 
direction he was much assisted by one of the guides, a native 
of Bechuana, who had often been to the mission-station at 
Kuruman and had, besides, spent much time at Cape Town. 

Before starting upon this journey across the country, 
Livingstone had heard many wonderful stories of a large 
and beautiful clear-water lake in the country of the Bako- 
ba, which every one seemed desirous to see. The vegetation 
along its margin and the majestic sweep of the hills that 
shut it in on every side were described as something well 
worth a journey of hundreds of miles to see, to say nothing 
of the lake itself. Livingstone's curiosity was aroused, his 
scientific ardor enkindled anew, and he determined to make 
a visit to this wonderful lake just as soon as he could. 
Though he had come on one great and pressing mission, 
still there was another, he thought, to which he might oc- 
casionally give his attention without in any way hindering 
the advancement of the more important one. With some- 
thing of this in his mind, even from the moment of his quit- 
ting Cape Town, he had busied himself as he went along 
making a collection of plants. Into these botanical re- 
searches he entered with much of his old love and eager- 
ness, and soon had many rare and wonderful specimens, 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 47 



which he afterward forwarded to the Royal Geographical 
Society at London. 

Livingstone arrived at Kuril man on the 31st day of July, 
1841. He remained there several months, gleaning all the 
information he could from Mr. Moffat and his fellow-labor- 
ers in regard to the country he was to penetrate still farther, 
and of the people among whom, he was going to labor. He 
also endeavored to familiarize himself with the workings of 
the mission-station, and to gain as much knowledge as was 
possible of the language of the Beehuana tribes, among 
whom it was likely his first work would lie. It was also at 
Kuru man that Livingstone first met the lovely woman who 
was to bring so much gladness into his life, and to make for 
him happy places of even the desert wastes. This was Mary, 
eldest daughter of the Rev. Mr. Moffat, whom he married 
in 1844. 

On his sailing from England, Livingstone's directions from 
the Missionary Society had been to proceed to Kuru man, 
and there await further instructions. However, after re- 
maining some time and no advices coming, he determined 
to make a journey of exploration farther into the interior in 
order to glean what information he could from his own ob- 
servations. On this journey he was accompanied by a 
brother missionary and two native teachers. Thus, while 
studying the country and its different phases, the customs 
and peculiarities of its people, he did not neglect that higher 
and nobler mission upon which he had come. As he went 
along, seeing and hearing, he would preach and teach, and 
strive by every means in his power to bring to a few dark- 
ened minds a knowledge of that precious Saviour of whom 
he had come so far to tell them. 

He went first among one of the Bechuaua tribes, north of 



48 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



Kuruman. Here lie found the people in a terrible condi- 
tion of fear and. suffering. On one side they were harassed 
by the Dutch slave-traders — or the Boers, as they were 
more commonly known, and of whom we shall hear more 
after awhile — and on the other by a dreaded native eneniv, 
Mosilikatze by name, who had encamped u])on their borders, 
every moment threatening to march in and destroy them. 
The Bechuanas were not disposed to give Livingstone and 
his companions a friendly welcome, for the Boers and oth- 
ers of their class had circulated all kinds of absurd stories 
in regard to the missionary and his intentions. They had 
tried to make these benighted people believe that Living- 
stone was a great conqueror, who had come to put every 
tribe into subjection to his rule. All this the Boers told 
because they hated Livingstone, knowing that his noble 
work would more plainly show up the wickedness of their 
traffic in slaves. Should he succeed in enlightening the 
poor ignorant creatures whom the Boers used as tools to 
make war upon their own race — so as to capture in these 
battles the slaves whom the wicked Dutch traders afterward 
took to the coast to sell to the captains of vessels touching 
there — they well knew it would put an end to their shame- 
less but exceedingly profitable business. 

Regardless of all the Boers had told concerning him, Liv- 
ingstone soon convinced the deluded natives that his errand 
to them was one of peace and good-will alone. It did not 
take him long to do this, either, as has been intimated; for 
his kindly manner, his simple and fearless methods — above 
all, his honest dealings — won directly upon the confidence 
of chiefs and people. 

During this journey some good seed were sown, though 
no direct result, as he could at that time see, came of his 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 49 

preaching and teaching. Still, for the little gained, Liv- 
ingstone took heart and thanked God. He believed from 
the first that it was to be a work of time— one, too, requir- 
ing the utmost patience. It would take years for the light 
to penetrate, even with a feeble ray, the thick darkness in 
which these people had so long dwelt. But eventually it 
would come; the flickering beam would gradually grow into 
the broad and steady blaze. Until that time, he could only 
wait and work and pray, believing that God, in his own 
good season, would send the reward. 

On the 10th of February, 1842, Livingstone left Kuril- 
man for a second journey into the interior of the Beohuana 
country. The first person that specially engaged his inter- 
est on this visit was Bubi, chief of a tribe of Bakwains, a 
branch of the Bechuanas. Livingstone left a native teacher 
with Bubi, hoping and praying that amidst the great gloom 
one steady light would arise and shine. If he could but 
lead Bubi out of the darkness, then might others of tbe 
people follow. 

Bubi was a good chief, and the only thing he lacked to 
make him a truly great chief was the religion of Christ in 
his heart. His thorough honesty, and that of his people, 
was fully demonstrated by their never having touched Liv- 
ingstone's possessions or meddled with them in any way. 
This was remarkable, especially as the wagon containing 
his outfit and that of his companions had stood for a long 
while unguarded in the principal street of the village, where 
men, women, and children had free access to it. 

Among other things, Livingstone showed Bubi's people 
how to dig a canal, whereby the water of the river was led 
into their gardens, thus greatly improving the vegetation. 

Alas for Livingstone's hopeful expectations in regard to 
4 



50 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 




RCDE METHODS OF AGRICCLTrRE AS PRACTICED BY BrBl*S PEOPLE. 

the conversion of Bubi! The native teacher he left be- 
hind soon sickened and died, while poor Bubi himself was 
burned to death in an explosion of gunpowder with which 
one of his sorcerers was experimenting. The ignorant 
creature had seen the flash of the powder when the guns of 
Livingstone's party were discharged, and, believing they 
had previously bewitched it, thought he would burn the en- 
chantment out of it. This fool-hardy experiment cost his 
own life and that of poor Bubi, who was curiously looking on. 
Advancing farther into the interior, Livingstone next 
crossed a portion of the great Kalahari desert. During 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 51 



this march the men were often pressed for food, and Liv- 
ingstone speaks of the keen delight with which he once sat 
down to a supper of rhinoceros meat, with porridge made of 
Indian meal thickly mixed with the gravy. Passing out of 
the desert, the travelers shortly came to the village of Se- 
koini, a chief of the Eamangwato. Livingstone thus speaks 
of these people: " Their conceptions of the Deity are of the 
most vague and contradictory nature, and the name of God 
conveys no more to their understanding than that of superior- 
ity. Hence they do not hesitate to apply the name to their 
chiefs. I was every day shocked by being addressed by 
that title myself, and though it as often furnished me with 
a text from which to tell them of the only true God and 
Jesus Christ whom he has sent, yet it deeply pained me, 
and I never felt so fully convinced of the lamentable dete- 
rioration of our species. It is indeed a mournful truth that 
man has become as the beasts that perish." 

He found this place constantly threatened by one great 
terror — lions. During the night their awful cries could be 
heard on every side, while in the day-time they were so bold 
as to show themselves all about the village. Almost on the 
very eve of Livingstone's arrival a shocking occurrence took 
place, which made a deep and lasting impression upon him. 
A woman was actually devoured in her garden by one of 
these beasts, and within but a few steps of her hut, where 
were her children and some of her relatives. The cries of 
the orphan children were heart-rending to hear. During 
the whole of the night and day following her death the 
hills and the valleys around echoed and reechoed with 
their bitter wails. The effect upon Livingstone was pain- 
ful and startling. He says: "I frequently thought, as I 
listened to the loud sobs, painfully indicative of the sorrows 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 53 



of those who have no hope, that if some of our churches 
could have heard their sad wailing, it would have awakened 
the firm resolution to do more for the heathen than they 
have yet done/ 1 

Though Livingstone at first found ►Sekomi very stub- 
born and bitterly opposed to the new religion, which taught 
among other things the forgiveness of enemies, some precious 
seed of the brave missionary's planting finally began to stir 
with a pulse of life. A conception of his darkened condi- 
tion, laint though it was at first, gradually dawned upon 
Sekomi. As the voice of conscience grew louder he became 
more alarmed and distressed. One day, as Livingstone sat 
beside him reading from the New Testament, and explain- 
ing the passages as he went along, in such language as Se- 
komi could best understand, the chief suddenly sprung to 
his feet and broke forth: "O this wicked heart of mine! 
It sometimes makes me angry at every one, and gives me 
terrible thoughts, and drives me to want to do terrible things! 
Give me medicine to change it; quick, my friend! O give 
me medicine, good medicine-man, to change my heart! " 

Livingstone lifted up the Testament, and began to tell 
him how through the teachings of that precious Book alone 
his heart could be changed, when poor Sekomi cried out 
again: "Ho; give me medicine, medicine to drink! Give 
me medicine, that my sick heart may be cured! I want no 
book, <rood medicine-man! What could I do with a book? 
I could neither eat nor drink it. O give me medicine, 
quick, lest my heart die!" He had seen Livingstone, in 
his office as physician, administering medicine to the sick 
and suffering, thereby making them well and strong again: 
thus, poor ignorant savage, the idea had fastened itself 
within his mind that the sick in spirit must be cured in the 



.")4 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 







same way. It was a long while ere Livingstone could mak 
the difference plain to him, or show him with any degree oi 
clearness the manner in which the Great Physician is to 
cure the sin-sick soul. 

The trihe next visited by Livingstone was the Bakaa. 
They were terribly afraid when they heard of his coming, 
for shortly before that they had murdered a trader and his 
whole company, and their guilty consciences made them see 
in Livingstone an avenger sent by the Great Spirit. This 
belief was all the more strengthened when they learned that 
he carried fire-arms, and could bring down a m-eat beast at 
many yards distant. With the exception of the chief and 
two of his attendants, every man, woman, and child forsook 
the village on Livingstone's approach. They were watch- 
ing him from a distance, and as soon as they saw him partake 
of a bowl of porridge with the chief, as a token of his friend- 
ly intentions, and afterward lie down and go to sleep, their 
fears were allayed, and in a little while they all returned 
to the village. 

As he had convinced the Bakwains, so did Livingstone 
finally convince the Bakaa that his mission was one of mer- 
cy and peace alone. He found them lamentably ignorant 
and superstitious. They had never even heard the name of 
God; or if they had, it was but to apply it to some great 
chief, living at a distance, who might be expected to come 
at any time and make war against them. Their conception 
of a Supreme Being was of a Great Spirit whose chariot 
was the clouds, and whose voice when angry spoke in thun- 
der, and when pleased his smile was the splendor of the 
noonday sun. The Great Spirit made his rewards in pro- 
portion to the number of scalps taken in open battle, and 
his punishments in accordance with the weak inaction of a 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 55 



cringing and cowardly spirit. They had no knowledge, no 
idea of a life hereafter, save their belief that the Great 
Spirit might take some of the more valiant of them to ride 
with him in his mighty cloud-chariot, and even to enter the 
brilliant arch that led to his principal abode, which was 
represented to them by the rainbow. 

Livingstone remained for some time among this tribe, en- 
deavoring to enlighten them as to the power of that " pre- 
cious blood that cleanseth from all sin.'" Here he for the 
first time addressed the people in their own language — for 
he had previously used interpreters — and after the manner 
of a discourse. This patient sowing was not without its 
reward, and Livingstone says of himself at this time: "I 
bless God daily that he has bestowed upon one so worthless 
the distinguished privilege and honor of being the first mes- 
senger of mercy who has ever trod these regions." 

Leaving the Bakaa, Livingstone began his return to Ku- 
ruman. On this journey he again heard of the wonderful 
lake, beyond which there was said to be a country abound- 
ing in ivory, gold, precious stones, and other valuable and 
beautiful things. At one time he was actually within a few 
days' journey of the lake, but not knowing it passed on. 
However, it remained for him to discover this lake in 1849, 
as we shall presently see. 

Livingstone had now been in Africa two years. In that 
time he had traveled over quite two thousand miles of coun- 
try, and seen sights to make his heart both sad and glad. In 
many respects he had found things quite as dark and for- 
bidding as they had been pictured, while on the other hand 
there was much to encourage him. Though the whole 
country abounded in dangers, and the traveler's life was 
often in peril, still it was far from being the arid and deso- 



56 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



late waste which the popular fancy had painted it. True, 
there were the burning sands, the blistering rays of the sun, 
the hissing of deadly serpents, and the roaring of ferocious 
wild beasts; but there were tall, beautiful trees;- bright, 
waving flowers; luxuriant grasses; broad, fertile valleys; 
and cool, deep lakes. The people, too, were ignorant and 
superstitious, and to some extent cruel and blood-thirsty; 
and there is no question that Livingstone's life might soon 
have paid the forfeit of his coming but for his manner of 
dealing with them. He w T as brave, open, and kind — letting 
them see from the first that he was their friend, and never 
once deceiving them. Thus they came to look upon him 
with trust, and to believe fully that he would do whatever 
he promised to do. Besides, they soon began to regard 
his mission as one of benefit to themselves. They did. not 
quite understand it as yet, with the exception of the few he 
had led into the clear light, but they felt that in some way 
he meant to do them good; and believing this, they let him 
go and come among them unmolested. His medical skill 
and knowledge helped him greatly, for he was often enabled 
thereby to soothe their pains and administer healingly to the 
ills of their bodies. Because of this, in time Livingstone's 
name grew to be a power in that savage land. The poor, 
afflicted creatures, hearing of the wonderful skill of this 
" great medicine-man," as he was now called, came to him 
from hundreds of miles. Xo wonder they felt impelled to 
consider him gratefully, and to reverence even the sound 
of his name, for he never turned away one without first 
doing all he could to allay his sufferings. 

One peculiarity of these people struck Livingstone, and 
touched a deep chord in his heart. Often he was called 
upon to remove tumors, cancers, and to perform other pain- 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 0< 



ful operations. These poor untutored savages endured the 
most terrible sufferings without a cry, often without so 
much as a change of face. Even the women were brave 
in this respect, scarcely giving a grunt or a moan. The 
men would say: "A man like me never cries. It is only 
children that cry out under pain." The women would say : 
" We are not men, but we know how not to cr} r ." " Yet," 
adds Livingstone, " when the Spirit of God began to work 
on their hearts, they would cry out most piteously. Some- 
times in church, while I was preaching, they would endeav- 
or to screen themselves from my eyes by hiding under the 
forms, or by covering their heads with their karosses, as a 
remedy against their convictions. Often, when they found 
that that would not do, they would rush out of the church, 
crying with all their might, as if the hand of death were 
behind them." Surely in these signs the missionary had 
much to cheer and encourage him, for well he knew that 
the hearts thus forcibly worked upon by the power of the 
Spirit could not be far from complete surrender. 

With all that he was doing for both the bodies and the 
souls of men, Livingstone had yet the time to make many 
botanical and geographical researches. During these two 
years he had discovered no less than thirty-two edible 
roots and forty-three fruits that grew without cultivation — 
a number of them in the desert, where the outside world 
had long believed no manner of vegetation could exist. 

Livingstone reached Kuruman on his return in June, 
1842. No directions had yet come from the Society; so lie 
set out on another journey of exploration, as well as of mis- 
sionary labor. This time he passed into the country of the 
Bakatla. Here he found the soil quite fertile, and the 
people more inclined to follow agriculture as a pursuit than 



58 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



any others lie had yet come upon. Among other things, 
he was astonished at beholding an iron manufactory in their 
midst. He at once expressed a desire to pass through it, and 
make a note of their manner of working it. Greatly to his 
amusement, however, he was informed that he could not do 
so unless he should first prove that he was a bachelor. No 
married man, they told him, was allowed to go through, for 
fear of his bewitching the iron. . A sad reflection this, sure- 
ly, upon the fairer sex ; so thought the gallant Doctor, and 
so he unburdened himself to those around him. But it was 
a just precaution, they assured himj and not altogether un- 
necessary, since a man subjected to a woman's wiles was him- 
self liable to practice those wiles in turn. Livingstone soon 
convinced them of the justness of his claim to enter, and was 
much interested, as well as surprised, by what he saw. 
When he asked the chief if he would like to have him come 
and live among his people for awhile and teach them, he 
jumped up and clapped his hands, and exclaimed: "O! I 
shall dance if you do! I shall hop, and I shall skip! If you 
will do what you say, I will collect all my people to hoe for 
you a garden, and you will get more sweet reed and corn than 
myself." This was a magnificent offer, when viewed from a 
savage point of view, since the chief's share of any thing 
was apt to be as much as that of all the others together. 
This was doubtless because he had so many wives to feed. 
But Livingstone could make no definite promise, for he 
was at that time undecided as to his plans. However, on 
reaching Kuruman, and finding that a message had at last 
come — a message that allowed him much freedom of action 
— he prepared to return to his new-found friends, the Ba- 
katla, in the valley of the Mabotsa. 



CHAPTER V. 



the bakatla welcome livingstone's return with great 
demonstration — his lion adventure— he becomes a hero 
— his marriage to mary moffat — their home at mabot- 
sa — they leave mabotsa for chonuane — the great chief, 
sec-help. — the removal to kolobexg — "did your fathers 
know?" — sec dele's conversion — the maliciousness of the 
boers — Livingstone's brave deed — he establishes a claim 
upon the bakwains — an enthusiastic bellman — the mis- 
sionary's earnest work begins to be rewarded. 



THE Bakatla were delighted at Livingstone's return, 
and prepared to welcome him with great demon- 
stration. Soon after this, an event occurred which came 
near putting an end to the life of our brave missionary. 
Although of a higher degree of intelligence and industry 
than the majority of their dusky brethren, the Bakatla 
were great cowards. They were scarcely ever known to go 
into a fight of their own accord, and when on the hunt they 
were oftener the pursued than the pursuing. Between the 
period of Livingstone's first and second visits a number of 
lions had established themselves about the village, badly 
frightening its inhabitants. Livingstone tried to organize 
an attacking party to go in search of the beasts, and drive 
them away. But despite his offer to put himself at their 
head, he could only induce some ten or twelve natives to 
follow him. They soon came in sight of the lions, on a 
small hill thickly set about with trees. At Livingstone's 
command the party formed a circle round the trees, gradu- 

(59) 



60 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



ally closing in until within easy range of the lions. Se- 
lecting a monster beast, that was lying upon a rock as 
though asleep, Livingstone brought his rifle to his shoulder, 
and prepared to aim. Before he could fire, one of the na- 
tives — the village school-master, to whom Livingstone had 
taught the use of fire-arms — raised his own gun and dis- 
charged it quickly. The ball, instead of striking the lion, 
only flattened itself against the rock whereon the huge brute 
lay. He sprung up, lashing his tail furiously, and savagely 
biting at the spot that had been hit. Then he dashed for- 
ward and broke unhurt through the circle of panic-stricken 
natives, who were scattering in every direction. The other 
lions, through the fear of the Natives, were also allowed to 
escape. Much disgusted at the cowardly behavior of the 
Bakatla, Livingstone called upon them to rally and pur- 
sue the beasts. Pie could do nothing with them, however; 
and fearing to fire, lest he should hit some of the running 
men, he prepared to return to the village. On his way back 
he came upon a fourth lion, also sitting upon a rock, bat 
instead of being asleep he was staring at the party with an- 
gry and threatening eyes. Livingstone stopped, took care- 
ful aim, and fired the contents of both barrels of his gun 
into the brute. The lion staggered, and for a moment 
seemed about to fall. Seeing this, the natives started to run 
toward him, clapping their hands and shouting, " He is shot! 
He is dead! Hurrah! hurrah! hurrah !" But Living- 
stone knew better than they did. Though badly wounded, 
the animal was far from being dead, and was likely to be- 
come infuriated. Livingstone's coolness and promptness at 
this critical moment saved more than one life, beyond doubt. 
"Stop!" he cried out warningly to the rushing natives. 
"Don't go ilea** him until I have had another shot. He is 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. Gi 



not dead; do not so deceive yourselves." While he was 
ramming the bullets down into his gun, with his back to the 
rock on which the lion stood, Livingstone hoard a shout. 
Glancing around quickly, he saw the huge brute crouched 
for a spring upon him. Before he could move out of the way 
the monster body came flying through the air. One of the 
paws struck Livingstone's shoulaer with crushing force, and 
the next moment he and the lion went down together. As 
the great paw held Livingstone's shoulder, the animal 
gave a horrible growl and shook it as a cat would shake a 
mouse, or a terrier-dog a rat. In this act the bone was 
splintered, and the flesh, from the neck down to the elbow, 
terribly lacerated with the sharp claws. Almost fainting 
outright, Livingstone nevertheless retained some degree of 
consciousness. He soon felt himself fast sinking into a stu- 
por that took away all fear, and allowed no sense of horror 
even as he glanced up into the infuriated brute's blazing 
eyes. In speaking of it further, Livingstone said it was 
doubtless such a sensation as patients have when, partly 
under the influence of chloroform, they see the operation 
that is taking place without feeling the sharp incisions of 
the knife. " I have since thought," Livingstone would add 
when relating the occurrence, "that this peculiar state was 
probably produced in all animals killed by the carnivora; 
and if so, it is a merciful provision by our benevolent Cre- 
ator for lessening the pain of death." 

While Livingstone thus lay in the clutches of the lion, 
Mebalwe, the school-master — who was really something of 
a brave man after all — leveled his gun, took aim this time 
more carefully, and fired; but his rifle, which was only 
a flint one, missed fire in both barrels. However, the 
flashes served to divert the attention of the lion, and to di- 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 63 



rect his rage into another channel. With a growl as hor- 
rible as the first, lie left Livingstone and sprung upon j\ie- 
balwe, biting into his thigh; whereupon a nephew of the 
school-master, gaining courage from the dreadful situation 
of his uncle, drew near and tried to fasten his spear into 
the brute's shoulder. His attention again diverted, the 
lion now turned to spring with increased fury upon his new 
assailant; but before he could do so. the bullet Livingstone 
had fired took fatal effect, and with a startling cry of baf- 
fled rage and hate, that made the rocks far and near re- 
sound, the monster beast fell dead. 

That evening the Bakatla made a huge bonfire of the 
carcass, about which they danced in great glee, declaring 
the slain king of the jungles the largest they had ever set 
their eyes upon. After that Livingstone was looked up to 
as second only to the chief. 

It was a long time before Livingstone's arm and shoulder 
healed. They always caused him some pain and much dis- 
comfort. On his first return to England he had the great- 
er portion of the splintered bone removed, and a false joint 
inserted. Tt was by this false joint that the body of the 
brave missionary was afterward identified when brought 
from the heart of Africa. 

Intelligence of Livingstone's great lion adventure spread 
all over the world. In his own country it made quite a 
hero of him. He was inclined to look somewhat lightly 
upon it, save as he recognized in it a miraculous escape 
through God's help. To be exalted for such a thing as 
this w r as far from the desire or tastes of a man of Living- 
stone's temperament. Whenever the subject was alluded 
to in his presence, by any of his enthusiastic countrymen, 
he would turn it off with some jesting remark. When they 



G4 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 

tried to honor him because of it, lie gave them to understand 
that he considered this adventure as the very least of his 
achievements. He had done many braver and better and 
grander things: still for them there was no woid of praise. 
The same world that had taken little note of the daring mis- 
sionary who had tramped thousands of miles through burn- 
ing sands and under a blazing sun, enduring all manner of 
suffering, to carry the glad tidings of eternal life to dying 
souls, was now going wild over the hunter who had come 
safely through a thrilling lion adventure. Such is the 
standard by which the world ever gauges true courage. 

To a young lady who once put the unexpected question, 
" What were your thoughts, Doctor, when the lion had you 
in his grasp? " he replied, with a dry humor bordering upon 
the grotesque, " I was Avondering what part of me he would 
eat first." 

Livingstone remained at Mabotsa about three years in 
all. It was to this place he first carried his wife after their 
marriage in 1844. The home into which the proud and 
happy husband introduced his young wife, though in the 
heart of a savage country, was not without many attrac- 
tions, even comforts. It was all the work of his own hands, 
and that made him the prouder of it. He had put in place 
every stick, every stone of the house; even the mud of the 
chimney he had mixed and daubed together, though his 
wounded arm had barely healed by this time. Still he 
cheerfully went on w T ith the work, happy in the contempla- 
tion of the joy and comfort that modest little home would 
afford. When finished the house w r as indeed a goodly one, 
notwithstanding the somewhat uncouth style of its archi- 
tecture. Within, every thing was as fresh and sweet and 
clean as the heart of love could devise, or the willing and 



LIFE OF DAVUL> LIVINGSTONE. 65 

diligent hand prepare from the rude materials to be found 
in that savage land. Without, the garden was a perfect 
picture 'of loveliness. There was even a little summer- 
house, built of plaited straw and stiff reeds ingeniously 
woven together. Taking all this into consideration, it is 
not surprising that Livingstone felt loath to quit his pleas- 
ant home, as he was afterward forced to do through a mis- 
understanding with one of the missionaries. 

Livingstone and his faithful wife had done good work at 
Mabotsa. In addition to their own dwelling, a school-house 
and church had been erected; and many darkened souls 
were brought to the light through their united and cour- 
ageous labors. Mabotsa never flourished again as it had 
done when the Livingstones resided there. 

The chief to w 7 hom Livingstone next attached himself 
was Sechele, head of one branch of the Bakwains, as Bubi 
was of the other — the tribe having been divided some years 
previous through a disagreement in regard to the chieftain- 
ship. They were not divided on any other point, however, and 
kept up very friendly relations. Sechele's village was only 
about five days' journey from the mission station of Mabot- 
sa, and Livingstone had once or twice visited Sechele dur- 
ing the period spent with the Bakatla. Having on one of 
these occasions been so fortunate as to heal a child of the 
chief's that the medicine-men of the tribe had given up to 
die, Livingstone had established a claim upon Sechele of 
which he seemed never to be unmindful. Ever since that 
time he had been persistent in urging Livingstone to come 
and take up his abode among his people for a short while, 
if no longer. From the moment that Livingstone met 
Sechele he felt strangely drawn toward him. He was of 
unusual intelligence, reading men and things with an ao- 
5 



66 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



curacy remarkable in one of his race. Livingstone felt that 
if he could convert Sechele to the truths of the gospel, he 
would have in him a valuable helper in the work of Chris- 
tianizing his people. 

So it was with many cheerful and hopeful anticipations 
that Livingstone left Mabotsa in 1846, and took up his 
abode with Sechele at the village of Chonuane. Sechele 
had descended from a long line of chiefs, each of whom had 
in some way distinguished himself from the common run of 
his people. Sechele's father and grandfather had been great 
travelers, the latter being also the first savage to tell his 
people of a race of white men altogether different in hab- 
its and appearance from theirs. 

Livingstone did not much like the situation of Sechele's 
village at Chonuane. There was not a sufficient supply of 
either water or pasturage. However, he determined to re- 
main there for a year or so, at least. Again with his own 
hands the brave missionary erected his dwelling-place and 
laid out his little patches of garden ; but this time he did 
not make so pretentious a building, for he did not know 
but that he might move away at any moment. As he had 
feared, a drought soon came; the vegetation dried up, and 
people and cattle suffered greatly for water. He now ad- 
vised Sechele to remove to some spot near a running body 
of water — a creek or river — from which canals might be dug 
to irrigate the land, thus giving: the vegetation as much 
moisture as possible. This would likewise provide an as- 
sured supply of water for cattle and people, unless a drought 
of unusual severity should come and dry up the stream it- 
self; but Livingstone believed that if the stream was full 
and deep such a catastrophe would not occur for some 
years. Sechele looked upon Livingstone's suggestion as a 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. G7 



wise one, and determined to act upon it at once. The place 
selected for the planting of the new village was about forty 
miles away, in a beautiful spot near the banks of the Kola- 
beng River, from which the station afterward took its name. 
They were still in the country of the Bechuana, and only 
about two hundred and fifty miles from Kuruman. On 
one side of them, though some distance away, was the great 
Kalahari desert, and on the other the Transvaal, the strong- 
hold of the Boers. Livingstone was so well pleased with 
the new situation that he determined to settle here perma- 
nently, making it the base of his operations in the country 
surrounding. So for the third time he be^an the buildino; 
of a home-nest for his little family. A family it was now, 
indeed, since a wee stranger had recently come to dwell 
with them — Robert Moffat Livingstone by name. 

At Chonuane, besides the drought, the missionaries — for 
we must include Mrs. Livingstone alon^ with her husband, 
since she labored side by side with him — had suffered much 
for the want of absolute necessities. They had to use 
parched corn for coffee, and sometimes the pounded roots 
of a certain tree in place of meal, the bare handful of corn 
being too precious to convert into bread. But all these dis- 
comforts they bore without a murmur — the delicate wife as 
well as the stronger husband, which proved how worthy 
she was to be his helpmeet. 

As he had hoped, Livingstone found Sechele ready and 
willing to hear the many truths of which he had come to 
tell him, and to receive instruction in other things, lie 
accomplished the remarkable feat of learning the alphabet 
in a single day. He was proud of the praise he received, 
and redoubled his efforts. When Livingstone came to tell 
him of the great white throne on which God sat, and of 



68 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



God himself, before whose shining face the earth and heav- 
ens shall flee away and roll together like a burning scroll, 
Secheie trembled with fear and terror. He sprung to his 
feet, and walked about restlessly; he wrung his hands, and 
looked up imploringly toward the sullen horizon, then an- 
gry with the signs of approaching tempest. Finally, com- 
ing back to where Livingstone sat, he threw himself, the 
picture of miserable despair, on the ground at the mission- 
ary's feet. " You startle me ! " he cried ; " you frighten me 
out of what senses I have ! You make my bones to shake and 
my knees to tremble till there is no more strength left in me ! 
My arm shakes so I could not draw 7 the arrow! My head 
swims in such a way I could not see how to follow 7 the buf- 
falo! O! alas is me! I am undone! Whither shall I fly? 
What shall I do? Everywhere I look I see the eyes of that 
great and angry God fixed upon me! O white man! " rais- 
ing his head suddenly with a passionate gesture, and look- 
ing at Livingstone with eyes that burned like fire, " why 
didn't you come sooner to tell me of this? Why have you 
let me go on all these years without bringing to me a knowl- 
edge of these terrible things?" Dropping his head again, 
he raised it after a moment and faced Livingstone, with the 
unexpected question: " White man, did your fathers know 
this that you have just told me? Did they know of this 
angry and frowning God who so punishes all those who do 
not try to please him?" On Livingstone's replying in the 
affirmative, he broke forth more piteously than ever : " Then 
why didn't your fathers come to tell my fathers? They 
knew all this, yet they let my fathers die in darkness and 
ignorance! They let them go and face this terrible God 
without telling them where they were going! " 

What a fearful cry to ring in Christian ears! What an 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 69 



accusation to sink into Christian hearts! No wonder the 
good missionary, as he heard it — even with all he had done — 
felt sad and reflective. " My fathers died in darkness and 
ignorance, and your fathers did not come to tell them of that 
God before whom they went unprepared.'' Alas ! poor hea- 
then, dying in darkness and despair, while just across one 
ocean were the white men— brothers they called themselves 
— w T ho knew all these things, yet they came not to tell you ! O 
reader, shall any of these things be said of us years hence? 
Shall that dreadful cry ring in our ears also, " You knew 
all this, yet you did not come to tell us? " Shall the bitter 
memories of neglected opportunities some day make our 
hearts sick with remorse? O let us pray not so, and work 
that it be not so; for there is a work for all, even for the 
smallest. There is a cry from over the seas : " We know not 
these things; will you come and tell us?" Who of us will 
heed it? Who of us, on the other hand, will carelessly pass 
it by? It is not for all of us to go, but it is for all of us to 
send- — our dollars, our dimes, our mites, every one that we 
can. Who of us will enter into the work 

So bravely, so kindly, so well, 
Angels will hasten the story to tell? 

Gradually light began to penetrate the darkened cham- 
bers of poor Sechele's soul. He saw himself a sinner, shut 
out from the wonderful heaven of which the good mission- 
ary had told him, yet not without hope as it had seemed to 
him at the first. There was still a chance, if he would only 
arise and take it. Livingstone had told him that this 
mighty God from his Great White Throne had declared, 
" He that cometh unto me, believing, I will in no wise east 
out." O the preciousness of such a promise! How could 
any one disregard it? Nearer and nearer Sechele drew to 



70 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



Jesus, yet with all his earnest faith and humble trust he 
could not quite forget his savage nature. He wanted all 
the people to accept this new religion, and to begin to pre- 
pare themselves to enter that wondrous abode of the good 
of which he had heard such beautiful stories. But many 
of them showed so little concern that he lost patience 
with them; and one day he astonished Livingstone by 
breaking forth with much passion- ' They are a stuoborn 
and an elephant-headed set! They will take nothing unless 
it is beaten into them. Let me get my good whip of rhinoc- 
eros hide, and I will soon have them down on their knees in 
a body, and begging for mercy at the top of their big, bel- 
lowing voices ! " It was some time before Livingstone could 
convince him that this was not the way to make Christians. 
The greatest difficulty in the way -of Sechele's full accept- 
ance of the Christian religion — as it had been with so many 
other chiefs — was the putting away of all his wives but one. 
"Why," he said, "how am I to choose between so many 
charming women ? Then, besides, there will be no end to 
a bad time; for when they know what I am about they will 
cry out and wring their hands, each one entreating me to 
take her. And finally when I do make a choice of one, 
all the others will think me an ungallant man ; and no 
woman yet has had that to say of Sechele. Further than 
this," he we»t on, still more distressed, " you do not know 
the fuss it will cause me w T ith the different women's rela- 
tives., They will each want to go to fight w T ith me; and I 
shall not know what to do, there are so many of them." On 
Livingstone's promising to see him safely out of the difficul- 
ty, Sechele sent all the women away, with the exception of 
one whom he confessed to Livingstone he had admired 
more than any of the others. Bv Sechele's orders these 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 71 

ex-wives were conveyed in great state to their former homes, 
having first been well provided for by the chief; so that the 
sting of their rejection was effectually soothed. 

In a little while Sechele, earnest and believing, presented 
himself for baptism. When the intelligence of what he had 
done was carried through the village, there was a great out- 
cry from the people. They even came in a body to the 
chief, entreating him not to forsake the religion of his fa- 
thers, as it would surely bring upon the whole tribe the an- 
ger of the Great Spirit, and they would all be destroyed. 
When Livingstone came to administer baptism to Sechele, 
they stood around him howling and screaming at such a 
rate that it was with the greatest difficulty he could com- 
pose himself for observing the rite in the impressive man- 
ner required. Rising from his knees, Sechele looked 
around upon his people, his eyes streaming with tears, 
while in a voice of passionate entreaty he thus addressed 
them: "O you really know not what you do! You are as 
willful and naughty as headstrong children who are bent on 
having their way, even to their own hurt. O! I entreat 
you, be willful and disobedient no longer, but come and let 
this good man/' pointing to Livingstone, "tell you of that 
which I have found most precious unto my soul. O my 
brethren, if you would but hear! Am I to be the only one 
of my people to accept the promises of that great God on 
the big White Throne? and the only one to go to see him 
in his heaven ? O my children, hearken to the voice of this 
good man while you may! Hear my own feeble voice, and / 
unbend those stiff necks of yours! O come and be saved 
while yet there is time! " But they only turned away and 
began to mock him behind his back, for they were afraid 
to do so openly 



72 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



In proof of his earnestness Sechele begged Livingstone 
to have family prayer in his hut, in addition to the services 
in the public hall. To these prayer-meetings Sechele invit- 
ed such of his people as cared to come. As might be sup- 
posed, only two or three of them responded; yet it glad- 
dened both Sechele's and Livingstone's hearts to find these 
two or three in time gradually coming to the light. Se- 
chele himself now undertook to conduct family prayer, and 
Livingstone was much impressed by the simple beauty and 
force of some of his petitions. " If he had had the advan- 
tages of a thorough education, he would have been a most 
remarkable man," Dr. Livingstone was heard to say of him 
again and again. Sechele also began to read his Bible dai- 
ly, under Livingstone's instructions. His favorite writer 
was Isaiah, and he used to exclaim, with kindling eyes: 
" He was a fine man, that Isaiah ! He knew how to talk ! " 
But in spite of Sechele's steadfast example and Living- 
stone's faithful preaching, with the exception of two or 
three of Sechele's stanch est followers — the same that had 
first come to the meeting — the people of the tribe remained 
obdurate. Worse than this, they grew sullen and fault- 
finding. The unusually severe drought Livingstone had 
thought possible, but not probable — at least for some time — 
coming on at this period, they charged it all to the mission- 
ary's presence among them; and but for Sechele's fine gov- 
erning abilities, as well as Livingstone's fearless bearing, 
there might now have been serious trouble. In the face of 
this unlooked-for calamity, they were threatened by the 
aggressive attitude of the Boers. These people, besides 
circulating malicious reports concerning Livingstone, were 
now verging upon what seemed an open declaration of war. 
When Livingstone had first attached himself to Sechele 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 73 



the Boers had, as was their usual mean way of doing, made 
a great noise about it, and tried to incite other tribes to war 
against Sechele; for they w r ere too cowardly to undertake 
it themselves without help. They told the natives that Se- 
chele was one of Livingstone's allies, and was to aid him in 
his conquest of the country, in return for which Sechele was 
to be made a great governor when Livingstone set up his 
autocratic reign throughout Africa. Among other pres- 
ents Livingetone had given Sechele a large iron pot: this 
the Boers tried to magnify into an enormous cannon, which 
they told the poor credulous savages Livingstone and Se- 
chele kept loaded and ready for instant use. 

To show how ignorant and superstitious these Boers were 
themselves, they became greatly frightened when the En- 
glish Government erected a large telescope on top of an ob- 
servatory at Cape Town. They said to Livingstone : " What 
right did your people have to set up that great glass to spy 
us out and to see what we were doing, even here behind the 
Cashan Mountains? " The Boers, however, dared not make 
w 7 ar openly against Livingstone, not only because of their 
great cowardice, but for fear of the trouble it would bring 
them into with England ; yet they did every thing in their 
power to keep the natives stirred up against him. They 
even tried it with Sechele's people, which was most unfort- 
unate for Livingstone at this time. But for Sechele's watch- 
ful eye and wise, firm rule, much mischief would have been 
wrought in the already rebellious camp at Kolobeng. The 
blessed rain came after awhile, and the savages grew 
ashamed of their hostile attitude toward Livingstone. Be- 
sides, something happened just at this time that rendered 
them forever afterward his stanch friends and admirers. 

One afternoon news came to the village that a party of 



74 LIFE OF L>AYIL> LIVINGSTONE 



Bechuanas, traveling to Sechele's town on a friendly visit, 
had been attacked by a black rhinoceros, one of the most 
savage and dangerous of all the African wild beasts. The 
furious animal had dashed at the wagon containing the 
party, and driven one of his horns into the bowels of the 
driver, inflicting a frightful wound. Thereupon every 
Bechuana had taken to his heels and left the poor driver 
to his fate. The rhinoceros, however, instead of staying 
and finishing the man, took after the fugitives; but being 
a heavy beast, and the men swift of foot, they were soon be- 
yond his reach. When they arrived at Sechele's camp they 
were panting and out of breath, for they had run nearly 
every step of the eight miles. When Livingstone heard 
the story he deemed it not only his professional but his 
Christian duty to go to the succor of the wounded driver. 
Sechele was horror-stricken when he learned of the mis- 
sionary's intention. It was then nearly night, and the ride 
was sixteen miles, there and back. " No, no! " said Sechele 
vehemently; "you must not think of such a thing, my 
friend, even for a minute. It would be certain death, and 
we cannot afford to lose you." Discovering that Living- 
stone could not be dissuaded from his purpose, Sechele's 
next endeavor was to persuade some of his people to ac- 
company the missionary. But not a man would volunteer, 
for the Bechuanas had brought too horrible a story — of how r 
the woods between the village and the spot where the driv- 
er lay were infested with black rhinoceroses. They de- 
clared that they had counted at least twenty. Finding 
that Livingstone would go, Sechele let his great love for 
his friend overcome his own fear, and offered himself to 
accompany Livingstone. Livingstone would not assent to 
this, and convinced Sechele that, in view of the discontented 



LIFE Or DAVID LIVINGSTONE. tO 



and rebellious condition of bis people, it might be neither 
safe nor wise for both of them to leave tiie village at the 
'same time. At length, mounting his horse, Livingstone set 
off alone. The whole camp followed him to the outskirts 
of the village, every head adorned with an enormous cow- 
tail, in order to give him good luck, they said. 

When Livingstone reached the end of his journey lie 
found the poor man dead, and beyond all need of help. 
But there was one thing he felt that he could do for him : 
he could take the body back with him, and give it decent 
burial. This he forthwith proceeded to do. 

It was long past midnight when Livingstone reached the 
village on his return, still he found the whole camp up and 
awaiting him. When they comprehended what he had 
done, the savages went nearly wild over him, and wanted 
to take him in a triumphal procession around the village. 
Livingstone at last dissuaded them from this intention, but 
he could not prevent the bonfires which they built all about 
the village, and around which they leaped and danced till 
morning, singing chants in his praise. 

After that, Livingstone had it all his own way with these 
savage natures; and there was no longer any trouble in get- 
ting them to come and hear him preach. Previous to that 
time Sechele had resorted to various stratagems to draw his 
people to church. He even hired a bellman, and instruct- 
ed him to use all the methods and tricks of which he was 
master to get the people to the preaching. This bellman 
was not only an enthusiast in every work he undertook — 
going at nothing half-way, but with a headlong rush that 
threatened to annihilate all things before him — but he 
was a great curiosity in himself. Tie stood over six foot in 
his bare feet, was gaunt in frame, and had an immense nose, 



76 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



a terrible pair of eyes, and a voice that could be heard from 
one end of the village to the other. He had a platform built 
near the center of the camp: on this he used to mount, a 
full half-hour before the beginning of the services, and yell 
out at the top of his stentorian voice: "Hi! you woman 
over there! I see you! You are not making ready to 
come to church; nor you man either!" Then, as though 
addressing a visible emissary : " Say, you fellow there, 
knock that woman down who is not coming to church! 
And that man, trip him up! Give him a kick where he 
lies! That is it! Let none escape! Knock them down! 
Eun over them! Trample on them! Beat them, I say! 
See! see! that woman is trying to put on her pot and slip 
out at the door to run to the woods! That is right, get 
after her! Trip her up, catch her, and maul her till she- 
bellows like a rhinoceros calf! " Most of those who caught 
these terrible words ran at once to the place of meeting, for 
they did not know but that they might be the next ones 
knocked down and trampled upon by those dreadful emis- 
saries of the bellman and Sechele, who, it seemed, were 
running about in search of them. But after the rain came, 
and Livingstone went on his terrible journey alone, there 
was no further need of the bellman. The people now came 
of their own accord to hear the brave missionary who had 
risked his own life to save that of a poor black man, and 
finding him dead had shown so much feeling as to bring 
his body back for decent burial. 

Soon many applications were made for membership in 
the Church ; but so conscientious was Livingstone, so great 
his fear that their admiration for him might lead them into 
a demonstration they did not really feel, he would not take 
them in until first assured of the genuineness of their con- 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 77 

victions and the sincerity of their intentions. " ' Fifty added 
to the Church ' sounds very fine at home," he wrote to one 
of his friends at this time; " but if only five of them are 
genuine, wha-t- will it profit in that great day? I have felt 
more than ever lately that the great object of our exertions 
ought to be conversion. Nothing will ever induce me to 
form an impure Church," he concluded; and nothing ever 
did. What better proof do we need than this that David 
Livingstone's work was not for praise, nor for show, but for 
the Master f He hated all sham, all false pretense; he 
loved the truth and thorough sincerity in every thing. He 
w T ould never administer the Lord's Supper to a single convert 
unless he had first, for a year at least, tested his earnest- 
ness and seen him live the pure, consistent life that marks 
those who are really Christ's followers. Thus the work he 
did was genuine work. No wonder its influence has stood 
steadfast, and widened with the years; for he built not upon 
the sand, but upon the Rock, against which the floods 
vainlv beat. 



CHAPTER VI. 



AN T AFRICAN VILLAGE -THE GOVERNMENT OF THE BECHUANA 
TRIBES — SECHELE ERECTS A CHURCH AND SCHOOL-HOUSE " TO 
THE HONOR OF GOD " — MRS. LIVINGSTONE'S NOBLE LABORS — THE 
CHEERFUL LIFE OF THE T3RAVE MISSIONARY AND HIS WIFE — 
A TRYING PERIOD — LIVINGSTONE'S ENDURING PATIENCE AND 
UNSHAKEN TRUST — THE AFRICAN METHOD OF PROCURING 
MEAT— THE HOSTILE ATTITUDE OF THE BOERS GROWS MORE 
THREATENING — SECHELE's NOBLE REPLY. 



DOUBTLESS it will interest the reader to learn some- 
thing of an African village, as well as to gain an in- 
sight into the home-life of the missionaries. The govern- 
ment of the Bechuana tribes, of which the Bakwains were 
one of the principal branches, was somewhat patriarchal in 
its form* Though the chief was the head of his people, the 
father was the head of his family, and no one — not even 
the chief himself — had a right to interfere with his rule in 
the household over which he presided. Outside, however, 
the word of the chief was the supreme law by which all 
were controlled. 

The village w r as generally erected somewhat in the form 
of a square, with the residence of the chief occupying the 
most conspicuous portion, usually near the center. Stretch- 
ing away on either side of the chief's home, in rows of two 
double were the huts of his wives, those of his near relations, 
and of the principal men of his tribe. About the huts of 
the fathers of families were also arranged, somewhat after 
the same plan, the huts of their children who had married 
(78) 



80 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



and set up house for themselves. As a general thing all 
the huts were built of tough grass, which in that country 
often grows to the height of ten or twelve feet. They were 
neatly and ingeniously thatched with coarse straw, and 
fenced in with high, strong walls made of tiger-grass. When 
Livingstone came among the Bakwains he taught them to 
use stone and mortar, as w r ell as boards sawed from the 
forest; and soon their village showed the effects of this in- 
dustry. 

Sechele's people, not being so savage as the majority of 
their dusky brethren, had gone partly clad — that is, with 
a leopard-skin, or covering of other kind — even when Liv- 
ingstone first made their acquaintance. Now, thanks to 
both his and Mrs. Livingstone's judicious instructions, they 
presented quite a respectable appearance. 

The new village of Kolobeng was altogether different 
from the old one at Chonuane. The houses were arranged 
in a cluster on the side of a gently sloping eminence instead 
of in the usual partly circular form. While some of the 
huts were built of straw, the majority, including the chief's 
residence, were made of stone or wood. Besides teaching 
the people to saw boards, Livingstone showed them how to 
make and press brick. He also taught them to make can- 
dles out of the fat of various animals, and soap from a plant 
called salsola, or from ordinary wood ashes. Thus the peo- 
ple came to have lights in their houses, instead of on the 
ground in front of them, and soap to cleanse with — two lux- 
uries hitherto unknown in South African life. One of the 
first things Livingstone had sought to instill into their 
minds was a love for cleanliness. In time this village in 
South Africa was regarded with no little wonder and curi- 
osity. Eager sight-seers often came from the remotest 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 81 

tribes to catch a glimpse of it, and to find out if the many 
extraordinary things that had been told of it were in any 
degree true. 

One of the first things Sechele had done after his conversion 
was to erect a more commodious church and school-house — 
" to the honor of God," he declared, " who is from henceforth 
the defender of my town." Over two hundred men were 
engaged in this work alone, and when completed the build- 
ings were indeed an honor to Him to whose glory they had 
been set apart, as well as a credit to the noble savage 
through whose zeal and devotion they had been erected. 
Mrs. Livingstone was given charge of the school, and in 
every way she proved herself a worthy and efficient co- 
laborer with her husband. 

The whole village generally arose at six o'clock in the 
summer and at seven in the winter. After family worship 
in the huts of those who had professed conversion to the 
new religion, they had breakfast. When breakfast was 
over, the men, women, and larger children assembled at 
the school-house, where Livingstone and the two native 
teachers assisted Mrs. Livingstone. The school held until 
eleven o'clock, when it w T as dismissed in order that the pu- 
pils might go to their work — the men to gardening or 
ditching and building, the women to the preparation of the 
noonday meal, and the children to such lighter tasks as 
they could perform. 

Mrs. Livingstone did her own domestic work, like the 
other women, with such help as her husband could give her. 
Usually he ground the corn for her in the little mill he had 
improvised, gathered the vegetables, milked the cow, or did 
any other part of the rough outdoor work he could. When 
ground, the corn was baked into bread in an oven Living- 
6 



82 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



stone had constructed in the side of an ant-hill; or it was 
fried into cakes in a covered frying-pan set in the center of 
the fire-place. In this same pan the meat was afterward 
prepared. For a churn they used ajar, in which the milk 
was shaken into butter. The coffee was boiled in another 
jar. Livingstone had fashioned the jars out of a stirf'clay 
that became very hard after \ aking in the sun. 

Now, all these things may appear as hardships to those 
whose lot has always been cast in civilized places; but that 
they were far from being so regarded by either Livingstone 
or his brave wife we have their own cheerful w r ords of de- 
nial. The gentle spirit of the patient and faithful wife had 
much to do with Livingstone's enjoyment of this mode of 
life. He says, when speaking of this time : " There is some- 
thing of the feeling which must have animated Alexander 
Selkirk on seeing conveniences spring up before him from 
his own ingenuity; and married life is all the sweeter when 
so many comforts emanate directly from the thrifty, striv- 
ing housewife's hands." 

After finishing her dinner, and taking only about an 
hour's rest, Mrs. Livingstone went next to her infant school, 
which comprised all the smaller children of the village, usu- 
ally from seventy-five to eighty in number. This school 
she conducted entirely alone. It must have been a severe 
tax upon her, for she was not very strong ; but if wearied, she 
never once showed it, either by look or word. She also 
had a sewing-class for girls, instructing them two evenings 
of each week. It would be impossible to rightly estimate 
the good accomplished by this heroic woman, or to put any 
thing like its real value upon her influence over the women 
and girls of the camp. Most nobly did she preserve her 
gracious heritage as a missionary's daughter and a mission- 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE, 



ary's wife. No wonder that Livingstone felt as if all the 

light and strength had forever gone out o\' his life when she 
died. 

Besides the regular Sunday morning and evening serv- 
ices, Livingstone held public exercises at the church or 

School-house two nights in the week. A great drum-like 
gong — one of Livingstone's many ingenious improvisations 
— called the people to these services as soon as supper and 
the milking of the eows were over. 

During the prevalence of the second and severer drought 
the camp at Kolobeng had suffered greatly, not only from 
the want of a sufficient supply of water, but also from the 
lack of proper food. It was a most trying period for Liv- 
ingstone, for the many deprivations he was forced to see his 
gentle wife and delicate babies undergo hurt him more than 
any thing he had yet been called upon to endure. At times 
it seemed to him as if his calmness would completely desert 
him. Once the supply of corn gave out, and they had to 
use bran for meal. It required the united grinding power 
of three laborers to render this fit for the baking of bread. 
' Even then it was scarcely palatable. At another time there 
was no meat, and they were obliged to eat locusts, which 
were far from a pleasant diet. In the neighborhood o\' the 
camp there was a species of frog called matlemetio. These 
frogs were now looked upon as desirable prizes by those who 
Were so fortunate as to secure a number of them. They 
were enormously large, and the meat — especially that of 
the hind legs — was really of a quality not to be despised 
even under more favorable circumstances. During the 
dry season they hid themselves in great holes which they 
dug in the ground, and remained there croaking for rain 
at the top of their coarse voices. These eroakings usually 



84 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



served as the death-kuell of the frogs, for the natives were 
thus led to their hiding-places. Taking the cue from the 
Bakwains, Livingstone began searching for these frogs ; and 
it must have been pitiable to see the great missionary, whose 
name was now going from continent to continent, crouched 
over a hole in the earth and digging with eager hands to 
secure these croakers for the hungry mouths- at home. 

Previous to the drought the inhabitants of Kolobeng, not- 
withstanding their unfriendliness toward Livingstone, had 
been both just and generous in the distribution of the meat 
of animals killed by the village at large. This was in 
great part owing to the influence of Sechele. Still, to do 
them justice, the men had never— even of their own accord 
— sought to deny Livingstone his portion of the meat taken. 
The custom followed out in procuring this meat was for a 
party of hunters to go forth at regular intervals and beat 
the woods about the camp. When they came u.pon a herd 
of antelopes, springboks, zebras, quaggas, etc., they would 
surround them and drive them toward an inclosure shaped 
like a V, which stood near one side of the village. At the 
pointed end of the inclosure there was a huge pit, into which 
the animals fell one over the other, and were dispatched by 
the spears of the natives. The meat was then divided out 
in proportion to the families, Livingstone getting his share 
equally with the others. 

The rain now coming, and Livingstone's gentle yet firm 
rule being fully established among them, all might have 
gone on exceedingly well with the Kolobeng camp from 
this time, and its inhabitants have felt contented and at 
their ease, but for one threatening evil. This was the Bo- 
ers, who were daily growing more and more determined in 
their stand against Livingstone. Of late they had taken a 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 85 



new turn, and one that had perplexed and alarmed the poor 
savages very much. They had assumed a menacing atti- 
tude toward the tribes that had for any length of time shel- 
tered Livingstone and given ear to his teachings. They 
had even attacked one of the tribes, and carried into captiv- 
ity the poor creatures who were not killed or not fortunate 
enough to escape from the village. Daily their threats 
against the Kolobeng camp became more violent. Finally 
they sent Sechele a message to the effect that if he did 
not leave Livingstone to shift for himself, and return to 
the old trading relations with them, they would attack his 
village and kill or make captives of all his people. An- 
other thing that Sechele had done greatly excited their an- 
ger and enmity: he had recently allowed a party of white 
traders to pass through his territory, and furnished them 
with guides to some of the more friendly tribes. One of 
the principal speculations of the Boers, whereby they added 
greatly to their revenues, was in the ivory trade. Thus, 
when they heard of the presence of the white traders in the 
Bechuana country, they trembled for their future gains; for 
they knew well enough that these Englishmen, who were far 
more honest than themselves, would allow the natives a fair 
price for the ivory which the Boers had heretofore been in 
the habit of getting in exchange for worthless trifles. 
Should the natives once get an insight into the real value 
of ivory, it was not likely that they would ever again al- 
low themselves to be cheated by the Boers. So the Boers 
sent Sechele a very threatening message, not only in regard 
to Livingstone, but also in regard to the future passing of 
the English traders through his country. Sechele now rose 
to the full height of his dignity and courage, and proved 
himself as earnest and faithful as he seemed, lie returned 



S6 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



the Boers this message : " I, Sechele, am an independent chief, 
controlled alone by God. God put me here, and him I am 
to obey, not you. Other tribes you may have conquered, 
but you Avill never conquer me as long as that God is with 
me. The English are my friends. They are good to me. 
They treat me as their equal. I get every thing I want 
from them. I would not hinder them if I could from go- 
ing anywhere about my country they choose. As to the 
one Englishman who is my friend of all others, and to 
whom I owe so much, I will stand by him to the last." 
Either this manly and confident reply had the effect of in- 
timidating the Boers for awhile, or else the fear of Living- 
stone himself was the real cause of their taking no immedi- 
ate action. As long as Livingstone remained in the camp 
they never came near it; but their hatred of him, and their 
mean desire to injure him as much as possible, knew no 
abatement, as we shall presently see. 



CHAPTER VII. 



LIVINGSTONE STARTS IN SEARCH OF LAKE NGAMI — THE KALA- 
HARI DESERT — SEKOMI'S TREACHEROUS BEHAVIOR — THE BUSH- 
MEN AND BAKLAHARI— LIVINGSTONE'S HOSPITABLE RECEPTION 
— CROSSING THE DESERT — THE SCARCITY OF WATER — SUFFER- 
INGS AND HARDSHIPS — THE DECEPTION OF THE MIRAGE 

REACHING THE ZOUGA — NEW HOPES AND DESIRES — LIVING- 
STONE'S ABSORBING DREAM— THE WONDERFUL LAKE AND THE 
COUNTRY SURROUNDING IT— THE RETURN TO KOLOBENG. 



SEEING things moving along so peacefully and smooth- 
ly at Kolobeng, Livingstone felt that he might now 
safely leave them for awhile in the hands of his faithful 
wife, Sechele, and the native teachers, and put into execu- 
tion a design he had long cherished. This was to make a 
journey of exploration into the country farther north, in 
order to find, if possible, that wonderful lake of which so 
much had been told him. His purpose was strengthened 
by the coming to the Kolobeng camp of the Messrs. Murray 
and Oswell, two great English travelers and hunters. They 
were also on the lookout for all the geographical knowledge 
they could gather, Mr. Murray especially. AVhen they 
heard of the lake they were eager to visit it, and proposed to 
Livingstone that they should start at once. As they would 
prove traveling companions not to be disregarded in a coun- 
try like this, and had proposed to bear all the expenses of 
guides, etc., Livingstone thought it an opportunity such as 
he might never have again. In the meantime a number of 
messengers from Lechulatebe, an influential chief who re- 

(87) 



88 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



sided in the lake country, had also appeared at Kolobeng, 
bearing a request that Livingstone would visit him, and 
holding out many inducements for him to do so. This, too, 
was taken into consideration, for one of the principal objects 
in view was to establish all the friendly relations possible 
with the chiefs of that section. 

Accordingly, at day-break on the morning of June 1st, 
1849, Livingstone, after first committing his little family to 
God's care, and to the trust and protection of the faithful 
Sechele, set out with his friends on the journey in search of 
Lake Ngami. Between them and the country they hoped 
to reach lay the great Kalahari desert, a portion of which 
Livingstone had once before crossed. But the journey 
then was nothing like the present journey was to be. Liv- 
ingstone earnestly prayed to God for guidance and protec- 
tion. 

Strictly speaking, the Kalahari is not really a desert, 
since it is far from being devoid of vegetation, or even of 
water. Most of the growth, however, is of a kind that can 
exist with but little moisture, and often, strange to say, 
grows the rankest in the driest places. The vegetation is 
principally of coarse, stiff grasses that grow to the height 
of many feet, and of various creeping plants, with here 
and there a clump of trees or a cluster of shrubs. Where 
water is found it is usually in small pools formed by the 
rain, or in the beds of long dried-up rivers. That the Kal- 
ahari did at one time, as is claimed for it, contain many 
water-courses is evidenced by the plainly defined channels 
of these streams, now glistening bare and arid in the blis- 
tering rays of the sun. 

The animals to be seen are chiefly of a kind that can long 
endure thirst, such as the antelope species. Yet others 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 89 



sometimes find their way up into the wildernesses of the 
desert through the dry channels of the streams, and it is 
not an uncommon sight to see a drove of buffaloes, or even 
of elephants, feeding upon the rank grasses. Snakes, most- 
ly of the smaller varieties, both poisonous and non-poison- 
ous, abound in great numbers, and one of the principal 
dangers against which the traveler has to guard is their 
often deadly bite. However, they generally give a warn- 
ing hiss, and with proper caution can be very nearly avoid- 
ed. Insects, too, are abundant and annoying — ants, cater- 
pillars, bugs, beetles, and roaches. 

The route chosen by Livingstone's party across the des- 
ert had not been passed over in fifty years or more, even by 
a native. Previous to that time, however, it had been a 
highway of travel for the various wandering tribes. But 
owing to the severe droughts that had prevailed since then, 
it had become such a parched and desolate waste that even 
the Bushmen, the most thirst-enduring of all the African 
tribes, dared not cross it. Livingstone nevertheless be- 
lieved that by a proper formation of plans, and the right 
preparation before starting out, he and his little party could 
get across safely. Moreover, he felt that it would be 
safer and wiser to risk even the terrors of the desert than 
attempt to pass through a country where dwelt several hos- 
tile tribes who had threatened to attack the explorers should 
they come near. Livingstone's friends not only approved 
his determination to choose the desert, but they never for a 
moment doubted that he would carry them safely across. 

As has been stated, the party started from the camp at 
Kolobeng on the morning of the 1st of June, 1849. For 
the first two days their route, lay through a hill-covered 
country, with beautiful and fertile valleys between. On 



90 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



the third day they entered the territory of Sekomi, of whom 
Ave have before heard. It seems that Sechele held some 
sort of authority over Sekomi, hence there was not the best 
of feeling on the latter's side, for he was a very proud and 
willful chief. In order to propitiate him, as well" as to win 
his good offices in behalf of Livingstone's proposed expedi- 
tion, a fine ox and two cows were sent forward as presents. 
Sekomi was quite profuse in his greeting of his old friend, 
Dr. Livingstone; lor he really both admired and liked the 
brave and kindly missionary, who was not afraid to do his 
duty even amidst the most trying circumstances. Still, 
when he learned of the Doctor's intention to cross the des- 
ert in search of the lake, he endeavored by every means in 
his power to dissuade him from it. He believed that if 
Livingstone 'was lost in the desert he would be blamed for 
it, because he had not tried to stop him when he passed 
through his domains. Thus he sought to impress Living- 
stone, and to make him believe that this was the chief cause 
of his opposition to the undertaking; but his real motive in 
trying to keep the missionary from pushing on will appear 
in the sequel. 

" Do not go," he urged Livingstone. " Turn back now, 
and return to Sechele. You will die; vou will surelv be 
lost in that desert! The thirst will kill you, and the sun 
will dry you up! Then all the white men, your brothers, 
will blame me, and doubtless make war against me for not 
trying to save you when I had the chance." 

Somehow Sekomi had gotten the idea that Livingstone 
was a person of great importance in his own country. There- 
fore, he really had some fear and misgiving in regard to the 
consequences likely to follow upon Livingstone's death. So 
he made tipJiis mind to do all he could to oppose the expe- 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 91 



dition on this ground, knowing it would never do to give the 
real reason of his opposition. 

To Sekomi's entreaties Livingstone only replied with 
quiet humor that he was a very "hard-headed man," and 
bent on having his own way; therefore, he could not go 
back, because his head told him to go on. At this Se- 
komi expressed a curiosity to feel the Doctor's head. 
Permission being granted, he thumped first upon the Doc- 
tor's head and then upon his own. Again he thumped 
alternately upon each, and then stopped with a look of per- 
plexity on his face. Suddenly, a light seeming to dawn upon 
him, he exclaimed: "Yes, your head is hard, sure enough; 
and so is mine — much harder, in fact, than yours! Now, 
I know what it is that makes me want to do things with all 
my might sometimes; it is my head! " 

Finding that Livingstone was determined to <ro on in 
spite of all persuasion, Sekomi finally sent with him two 
of his men, to increase his escort, as he said, and to prove 
his friendly interest in the missionary's plans. But alas! 
the wily Sekomi was far from regarding the expedition in 
the friendly light he pretended, as it all soon came out. 
Knowing Livingstone so well, Sekomi feared there might 
be a chance after all for the party under his guidance to 
get safely across the desert — which, by the way, was the 
last thing Sekomi wanted it to do. Not that he was wicked 
and cruel enough to desire that the Doctor's life or that of 
any one with him should pay the forfeit, but only that he 
did not want them to reach the country about the lake. 
The truth is, Sekomi had long been enjoying a sort of mo- 
nopoly of the ivory business from that direction, and he 
feared that if once Dr. Livingstone and his white compan- 
ions reached the people there they would open their eyes to 



92 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



the real value of the ivory. So, discovering that he could 
not stop them by fair means, he did not hesitate to use foul 
means. The men sent along, apparently as friends, were in 
reality enemies and mischief-makers, who had instructions 
from Sekomi to stir up against Livingstone and his party 
such of the various tribes through which they passed as 
they could. The men began faithfully at the first oppor- 
tunity to carry out Sekomi's instructions, and there is no 
telling what trouble might have befallen had not one of 
them died very suddenly, and the other, looking upon it as 
a judgment from that God to whom Livingstone constantly 
prayed, fled back to his people in terror. 

Sekomi's traitorous conduct may seem unaccountable 
when we recall the convictions he had shown under Liv- 
ingstone's teaching, and the pathetic petitions he had made 
to have his " sick heart " cured. Doubtless the poor fellow 
had been very much in earnest at that time, and perhaps 
even now was trying to be honest in the new life he was 
professing to lead. But the old nature would crop out 
every now and then, and, like so many of us, he did not 
make the right kind of an effort to keep it down. Hence w'e 
must not judge his conduct too harshly, remembering that 
he was but a savage and under the control of his leading 
passion — avarice. 

From Sekomi's country the way lay principally along 
the bed of an ancient water-course. The sand at the bot- 
tom of the track was exceedingly white and beautiful, with 
tall cliffs on either side covered with brilliant flowers and 
graceful festoons of creeping plants and vines. The trav- 
elers came next to broad, flat heaths, with rich carpetings 
of grass and thick clusters of a shrub that bore a blossom 
as delicate and fragrant as the lilac. Here and there, also, 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 93 

the acacia bloomed, while high over all the magnificent 
cucumber-tree reared aloft its wealth of snowy treasures — 
a perfect revelation of delight. On the outskirts of the des- 
ert, and even some distance into it, they came upon several 
tribes of the Bushmen and a sort of outcast tribe of the 
Bechuana known as the Baklahari. This latter tribe had 
been driven from its home by some of the more powerful 
and warlike divisions of its own people, who, doubtless act- 
ing under instigation from the Boers, had endeavored to 
capture the poor Baklahari and sell them as slaves. Though 
they were exceedingly ignorant and superstitious, almost 
leading the life of the wild beasts about them, Livingstone 
found both the Bushmen and the Baklahari kind-hearted 
and trusty. 

The principal occupation of the Bushmen was hunting, 
in which they were assisted by a breed of dogs but little 
more miserable looking than themselves. 

The Baklahari, having in their former home had some 
knowledge of the tillage of the soil, followed it here to a 
limited extent, raising melons, potatoes, and such tuberous 
plants as the sandy and sterile earth would grow. They, 
like the Bushmen, also engaged in hunting, but not to the 
same extent. The skins of the animals thus obtained were 
traded to the tribes farther east for tobacco, knives, pipes, 
dogs, spears, and such things. The highest condition of 
wealth known to these Bushmen was the possession of a 
cow, or even of a small-sized heifer; and happy indeed was 
he considered who could procure in the hunt skins sufficient 
to give in exchange for one of these animals! One ques- 
tion they were constantly putting to Livingstone was, " How 
many cows has your Queen?" On the answer to that de- 
pended their estimation of her position and importance. 



94 J,IF£ OF DAY; 3) LIVINGSTONE. 



The Bushmen were the very lowest class known to Afri- 
can society, if that term may with any propriety be used 
here. They were looked down upon by the more favored 
tribes as occupying a position not one whit above that of 
the dogs with which they hunted. 

" No one seems to care for the poor Bushman's soul,'* 
said Livingstone; "and yet/' he continues, "what a won- 
derful people they are! always merry and laughing, and 
never telling lies wantonly like the Bechuanas. They 
have, too, more of the appearance of worship than the Be- 
chuanas/' 

How Livingstone's heart yearned over these poor outcast 
people! and how he desired to remain among them long 
enough to tell them of that loving Saviour in whose eyes 
all the world is equal! But he had neither the time nor 
the opportunity; besides, the language of these Bushmen 
was so strange and difficult it would have taken a year or 
more to comprehend it so as to make himself understood in 
the great truths he had to teach. Moreover, their home 
and their condition were such that he could not have 
brought his family to live among them. Still he did not 
altogether give them over. Many plans were formed for 
their future benefit and enlightenment. God would surely 
yet open up a way for some gleam of light to be brought to 
the poor Bushman's darkened soul. 

The Bushmen had always been residents of the desert 
country: it gave them protection from the more powerful 
and hostile tribes. The great scarcity of water and the 
sparseness of vegetable life kept away all invaders; for 
how hostile soever might be their intentions toward the 
poor Bushmen, they usually thought too much of their own 
lives to risk them in so inhospitable a region. Besides, the 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE 95 



Bushman's skill in using the bow and poisoned arrow was 
well known aud dreaded. 

The Baklahari, in fleeing from their former home, had 
settled upon the edges of the desert for very much the same 
reasons as those that had prompted the Bushmen to choose 
it as their first and only abiding-place. Being assured of 
the peaceful intentions of the Baklahari, and doubtless hav- 
ing for them a "fellow feeling that made them wondrous 
kind/' the Bushmen had made friends with them from the 
first, and they were now as one people. 

The scarcity of water did not materially bother the Bak- 
lahari or the Bushmen; indeed, they had ingeniously pro- 
vided against this to a certain degree by obtaining a large 
supply of water when they could, and hiding it in ostrich 
eggs in the sand. Strange to say, the water kept fresher in 
this manner than any other. But their real motive in thus 
concealing it in the sand was to, keep it safe in case of a 
sudden invasion by any of their enemies. 

Sometimes a great company of men, women, and children 
of the Bushmen and Baklahari tribes would go on a long 
journey to some road-side well or spring, where they would 
secure enough of the precious fluid to last them until they 
could make another similar excursion. 

Livingstone had no trouble with either the Baklahari or 
the Bushmen, although he scarce understood a word of the 
language they spoke, especially of the latter. However, by 
various signs, and by the help of one of the guides he had 
with him, he managed to make his meaning for most of the 
time clear to them. His manner of treating them was to 
sit down quietly beside them and talk to them in a gentle 
and friendly way, giving to the men presents of tobacco and 
to the women beads or strips of gay-colored cloth. In 



96 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



this way ne often procured supplies of water and gained 
other needed assistance from them which no threatening or 
bullying could have forced them to give. Thus we sec 
that it paid to be kind even to " a dog of a Bushman/' as 
they were called. They took to Livingstone at once, and 
were constantly pressing him to partake of their hospitality. 
Again and again they tried to urge upon him portions of their 
scanty fare. Livingstone did not wish to wound their feel- 
ings by a refusal, but as this fare generally consisted of the 
uncooked carcass of a rat, a cat, or a jackal, we may well 
believe that he declined it as gently, yet firmly, as he could. 
The Bushmen were often seen by Livingstone and his par- 
ty devouring with the greatest avidity the freshly killed 
bodies of such doubtful animals as we have mentioned with- 
out submitting them to the process of cooking. 

After striking the desert, Livingstone and his friends 
found the journey not only difficult, but laborious and dan- 
gerous. Trials calculated to shake the stoutest nerves be- 
set them on every side. The sand was not only heavy and 
hot to wade through, but the sun beat down upon their 
heads with such intensity that it seemed as if man and 
beast must succumb. They soon gave up trying to travel 
at all except in the early mornings and the first part of the 
nights. Even with this precaution their sufferings were 
great, for the supply of water ran low, and they had to go 
whole days with not more than a spoonful to each man to 
moisten his parched tongue. Once their water gave out 
entirely, and they w T ere three days without a drop. It 
seemed then as if they must surely die. But as hard as it 
was for the men, it was worse for the poor animals, for they 
had been without water much longer. Their tortures were 
fearful to witness, their piteous moans and bellowings terri- 



LIFE OF DAVI1J LIVINGSTONE. 97 



ble to hear. Livingstone's tender heart was stirred to its 
depths, and if the others had listened to him the poor dumb, 
suffering creatures would have been put out of their misery 
on the spot. But had this been done, the men's own chances 
of getting out of the desert would have been very uncertain. 

Late in the afternoon of the third day that they had been 
without water, when even the guide had almost abandoned 
hope of finding any, and every one of the little party felt 
that death could not be far away, they suddenly came upon 
a small mud-hole which a rhinoceros had made by rolling 
himself in what was apparently moist earth. The poor 
oxen rushed toward it frantically ; they had to be beaten 
off. The dogs sprung forward to lap it up; it was necessa- 
ry to kick them nearly senseless before they could be got- 
ten away. Such scenes were especially harrowing to Liv- 
ingstone, and he turned away from them sick at heart. 
Still he knew that these measures were often necessary in 
the preservation of more valuable life. That mud-hole ap- 
parently contained all the water within reach for eight oxen, 
ten dogs, twenty horses, and twenty-five men— only appar- 
ently, though, for the guide recognized the surrounding indi- 
cations as favorable, and declared that there was plenty of 
water at hand. This assertion proved to be correct, as more 
water was presently found — not affording each man and 
beast the quantity needed, but enough to greatly appease 
their raging thirst. 

Once the travelers were in such straits that only enough 
water could be procured for the men and horses, the poor 
oxen having to be sent back a four-days 1 journey in order 
to quench their thirst. Several (lavs after this the party 
were again without water. For two days not a drop had 
passed the lips of one of the men, while the beasts went 



98 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



twice as long with unslaked thirst. The poor creatures were 
lowing piteously; their steps lagged, their tongues lolled 
from their mouths, and it was difficult to urge them on- 
ward. Three of the men who had been sent forward to 
discover water at length returned with the joyful cry of 
"Metse! Metse! "— " AVater! Water!" In proof of the 
good news, they exhibited the mud-stains on their hands 
and knees. Even the oxen seemed to understand the magic 
word, and to catch the joyful excitement of the moment: 
there was no further need to urge them forward — they went 
gladly of their own accord, nearly upsetting the lumbering 
old cart in their wild haste, and dragging the driver aloug 
with them. A large pool of rain-water had been found, 
and hedging it in, as if to give it a cooler and more de- 
lightful appearance, were all sorts of lush and rank-grow- 
ing grasses. No wonder the famished oxen rushed toward 
it with frantic delight! Livingstone thus speaks of the in- 
cident: "It does one's heart good to see the thirsty oxen 
rush into a pool of delicious rain-w T ater, as this was. In 
they dash until the water is deep enough to be nearly level 
with their throats; and there they stand, drawing slowly 
in the long, refreshing mouthfuls until their formerly col- 
lapsed sides distend as if they would burst. So much do 
they imbibe that a sudden jerk, when they come out on the 
bank, makes some of the water run out of their mouths; 
but as they have been days without food too, they very 
soon commence to graze, and of grass there was the great- 
est abundance all around/' 

The little company pushed bravely on. Though they 
suffered much from the scarcity of water, there was no act- 
ual want of food. Sometimes, it is true, the supply ran 
low; sometimes it was not of the most palatable quality; 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTON::. 99 



but the men had their guns with them, and occasionally 
brought down an antelope or two, with now and then a 
gnu or a giraffe, which proved most acceptable. There 
were also many edible plants, which served to appease 
hunger until something more substantial could be found 
Among them were the leroshua, or scarlet cucumber; the 
mokuri, a bulbous plant somewhat in the shape of a pota- 
to; and the water-melon. The leroshua and the mokuri in- 
terested Livingstone very much. The former was a rather 
small plant, with long, narrow leaves, and a stalk about as 
thick as the stem of a common tobacco-pipe. This plant 
sprung from a root, the greater part of it being above 
ground, and in shape not unlike a cucumber, from which 
resemblance it took its name. The root was about six or 
seven inches in diameter, and varied in length from ten 
and twelve to sixteen and eighteen inches. It was covered 
with a rind-like substance, which on being removed dis- 
played a "mass of cellular tissue filled with a fluid much 
like that of a young turnip." It also resembled the turnip 
in flavor, though not so juicy or so tender. The mokuri 
was a creeping plant, to which was attached a number of 
roots, some of them as large as a man's head. It had a fla- 
vor something like that of a sweet potato, though flatter, 
and a little bitter. It was not altogether unpalatable. The 
water-melon was often found in considerable quantities, espe- 
cially where the earth was inclined to moisture: though not 
so large or so sweet as the cultivated melon, it was highly 
refreshing to the thirst-tortured travelers. 

On one occasion, while passing over a sandy tract skirted 
by stunted trees of the acacia variety, Livingstone's curios- 
ity was aroused by seeing several of his men squatted down 
in different directions, and all industriously digging in the 



100 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



sand. Inquiring into the matter, he learned that they were 
hunting for a large caterpillar whose habit it was to bury 
itself in the sand near these trees, and in the leaves of which 
it found its food. The men already had a number of these 
furry creatures, which they afterward roasted and ate with 
great relish as an extra delicacy. They regarded it as a 
lack of taste in Livingstone and his white friends that 
caused them to forego the caterpillars. 

Late owe afternoon, when the travelers had been about 
three weeks on the way, as they were journeying over one 
of the sandiest and most trying parts of the whole course, 
and men and animals alike were tortured with the heat and 
nearly dead with thirst, Mr. Oswell who was some distance 
in advance, suddenly threw up his hat and gave a loud 
shout. Again and again he repeated it, accompanying it 
with such wild gesticulations as made the natives who were 
the nearer to him think he was going mad, and rush to 
Livingstone for protection. Livingstone himself looked 
with some amazement upon his friend's extraordinary be- 
havior. Directly Mr. Oswell began crying at the top of 
his voice: "The lake! the lake! Come and see!" Rush- 
ing to the eminence he occupied, they all beheld what did 
seem a most magnificent lake stretching away for miles. 
The picture was perfect. In the soft rays of the setting 
sun the water seemed to catch and retain myriads of bright 
sparkles, which w T ere in turn reflected in every direction. 
Even the natives and the dogs were deceived, and rushed 
forward to leap into the water. That it was but a decep- 
tion, and not a lake, was soon discovered, greatly to the 
chagrin of the whole party, with the exception of Living- 
stone and the guides, who knew that the lake could not be 
so near. What they had seen proved to be a mirage, caused 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTON 101 



by the sun's rays shining upon a vast salt-lick covered with 
incrustations of lime. The lake was nearly three hundred 
miles away. A little farther on they found some water, 
and, greatly refreshed, continued their journey till some 
hours in the night. The explorers were often deceived by 
these mirages — even Livingstone and the guides occasion- 
ally, though they never once supposed them to be the lake, 
but only pools of water. 

Near the close of the afternoon of July 4th they came to 
the banks of a veritable river. Their shouts of joy drew 
around them crowds of natives, who stared at them curi- 
ously, and not without alarm, for they thought them mad, 
as the natives of the party had previously thought of Mr. 
Oswell. They w T ere finally reassured, however, and proved 
to be very friendly, assisting the travelers in every way 
they could by offering information and supplies. This riv- 
er was the Zouga, a deep and beautiful stream with a plac- 
id yet swiftly moving current. The natives told Living- 
stone, what he had previously suspected, that the Zouga 
flowed into Lake Ngami, and all they would have to do 
in order to reach the lake was to follow the course of the 
river. 

The journey along the banks of the Zouga was delightful. 
At almost every step the travelers came upon a sight both 
novel and wonderful. As to the river itself, it may per- 
haps best be described in Livingstone's own enthusiastic 
w r ords: "It was glorious! I never saw any thing more 
grand. It reminded me somewhat of my own lovely Clyde, 
though many times more beautiful, I must confess." All 
along the low, level banks grew tall, magnificent trees, 
many of them covered with fruits of various kinds. The 
trunks of some of these gigantic monarchs measured from 




(102) 



SOME INHABITANTS OF THE ZOUGA JUNGLES. 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 103 



sixty and sixty-five to seventy feet in circumference. On 
one of them Livingstone found growing a fruit over a foot 
in length and from three to four inches in diameter. In 
shape it was not unlike the banana, though it had a more 
vivid coloring. Another group of trees presented the com- 
pact appearance of a mass of granite, and were identical 
with granite in their hue. 

Everywhere grew beautiful wild flowers and lush sweet 
grasses. The birds sung in the boughs and the butterflies 
flew hither and thither sipping sweets. Away up among 
the tallest branches of the trees monkeys sat and chattered 
to each other, or mischievously threw nuts at the saucy 
parrots, who screamed back at them, and shook their brill- 
iant plumage defiantly. Altogether it was a picture to 
ravish the eye, and to delight the heart, making it feel how 
good is God and how beautiful the world lie has made. To 
the sun-scorched and weary travelers, just from their toil- 
some march across the desert, it was indeed as a glimpse of 
paradise. 

After traveling two or three days they came upon another 
large, fine stream that flowed into the river Zouga from the 
north. Livingstone inquired of the natives whence it came, 
and he was told, " O from a country full of rivers! so many, 
in fact, no one can tell their number, and full of large trees." 
It was then that Livingstone received the first strong con- 
firmation of his belief that Central Africa was far from be- 
ing the sandy and barren plateau it had hitherto been rep- 
resented, even by the geographers. As firm as was this 
belief, still firmer was the decision formed with the coming 
of this convincing testimony in regard to the" country of 
rivers" — a decision that governed and directed Living- 
stone's future course. He would find out just what kind 



104 LfFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



of a country Central Africa was. If such as the natives 
represented it, and as he had himself believed, a land "flow- 
ing with rivers," then what a glorious prospect for opening 
up, across the very heart of the continent, a grand highway 
of commerce and travel ! No further need then for it to be 
a land un visited, dreaded, and unknown! No longer any 
necessity for its inhabitants to remain shut out from the 
light and knowledge of civilized life! When routes of 
travel were opened up, difficulties made less difficult and 
dangers less dangerous, others besides himself would come 
— come with the pure intention to instruct and to ben- 
efit. O what a glorious day for this heathen land, when 
its people should both know and be known! This dream 
so impressed Livingstone that even after he came to the 
magnificent lake, for a sight of which he had braved the 
terrors of the desert, it failed to awaken in him any thing 
like the emotions he had anticipated. 

They reached Lake Ngami on the 1st of August, just 
two months from the time of beginning the journey. The 
lake was all that it had been represented, and more. As 
they looked upon its beautiful expanse of waters they could 
detect no horizon, so they concluded that it must be many 
miles across. It afterward proved to be fully a hundred 
miles in circumference and some twenty to twenty-five miles 
in width. It was about two thousand feet above the level 
of the sea, from which it was distant some eight hundred 
miles. The only objection that Livingstone had to it was 
that it seemed to be too shallow in many parts for naviga- 
ble purposes. However, it was a grand sheet of water, and 
it was something to have discovered it, and with Messrs. 
Oswell and Murray to have been the first white men doubt- 
less that ever gazed upon it. 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 105 



On their way back home they had more time and more 
inclination to make observations of the country along the 
banks of the Zouga. Going up, their minds had been too 
much filled with thoughts of the wonderful lake, and with 
impatience to reach it, to make a long stop anywhere else. 
But now they journeyed more leisurely, and often lingered 
for days at a time to mingle with the natives. The people 
took a great fancy to Livingstone, and tried to get him to 
stay with them altogether. They feasted the party on every 
good thing they could set before them. At these entertain- 
ments they had a way of forming a circle and dancing 
around with loud songs in praise of the river Zouga, which 
they thought the noblest and grandest river in the world. 
They told Livingstone that those who came to look upon 
the Zouga never cared to go back again. Even the " mes- 
senger sent in haste!' often became a permanent sojourner. 

Livingstone preached in several places as he went along, 
and the people came in crowds to hear him. Doubtless 
many precious seed were thus left to spring up by the way- 
side. He says of the Bakoba, one of the tribes along the 
Zouga, and anions whom he remained a week or more 
preaching and teaching: "The Bakoba are a fine, frank 
race of men, and seem to understand the message better 
than any people to whom I have spoken on divine subjects 
for the first time." He greatly enjoyed riding on the river 
in the canoes of the Bakoba, which were quite ingeniously 
contrived out of the trunks of single trees, nicely finished 
and gracefully shaped. He enjoyed the fishing, too, with 
all the relish of a boy on his first holiday in the country. 
When his friends, Messrs. Oswell and Murray, once tried 
to joke him about his enthusiasm, he exclaimed, with a 
twinkle of humor: "0 you must remember that 1 have 



106 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



been long in a parched-up land ! " Some of the fish caught 
in the Zouga weighed nearly a hundred pounds, many of 
them as much as fifty and sixty. It often took eight or ten 
men to haul in one of these larger ones. 

Livingstone was much struck by the great fecundity of 
animal life everywhere visible in this wonderful region. 
The river fairly teemed with fish. They could be seen at 
any time leaping in the water. They even approached the 
banks in great shoals. Elephants, zebras, giraffes, water- 
bucks, hippopotami, and many other large, fine animals 
were also found in such abundance that it was no trouble 
to kill several of them on every hunt. The soil was highly 
productive, yielding all kinds of vegetables and fruits with 
but little cultivation, often without any at all. Along the 
shores of the river Livingstone found wild indigo growing 
in great quantities. The natives raised two kinds of cotton, 
which they made into cloth for garments of various descrip- 
tions, dyeing it with the indigo and with a hark that gave 
it a tinge of yellow, as copperas would have done. Alto- 
gether it was a magnificent and wonderful country ; and 
the more Livingstone saw of it the more he became enam- 
ored with it, and the brighter grew his dream in regard 
to it. 

After safely passing through the desert on their return, 
the party reached Kolobeng in the autumn of 1849, having 
been absent a little more than five months in all. 



CHAPTER VIII. 



HOW THE NEWS OF THE DISCOVERY OF THE NC4AMI AND ZOUGA 
WAS RECEIVED IN ENGLAND — THE ENDEAVOR TO REACH THE 
GREAT CHIBF, SEBITUANE — SECOND ATTEMPT— MRS. LIVING- 
STONE AND HER CHILDREN OF THE PARTY — FAILURE OF THE 
UNDERTAKING — RETURN TO KOLOCENG — DASTARDLY RAID OF 
THE BOERS — THIRD AND SUCCESSFUL ATTEMPT TO REACH SE- 
BITUANE— INCIDENTS BY THE WAY — SEBITUANE's DEATH. 



THE news of the discovery of the lake, the river, and 
the wonderful country adjacent was at once commu- 
nicated by Livingstone to the Royal Geographical Society 
of London. All England was surprised and delighted: 
the name of Livingstone was now on every tongue. Even 
the Queen expressed her gratification, and awarded the ex- 
plorer twenty-five guineas. 

In the spring of 1850 Livingstone determined to under- 
take another journey into the lake country, for the purpose 
of making further geographical explorations, and to engage 
in such mission work as he could. He had for some time 
thought of removing from Kolobeng to a field of labor fur- 
ther north. He knew that he could not always remain 
among the Bakwains, since that would not be just to the 
other darkened minds awaiting the coming of the light. 
Besides, the station at Kolobeng was getting along so well 
under the care of Sechele and the native teachers he felt 
that he-might safely leave it, for a year or two at least, 

Previous to his first journey to Lake Ngami, Livingstone 
had purposed trying to reach the country of Sebituane, be- 

(107) 



108 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTON 



tween whom aud Seehele there was. the most cordial rela- 
tions. Sebituane was a mighty chief, with a large follow- 
ing that made him both admired and feared throughout a 
vast extent of territory. Thus Livingstone felt that if he 
could secure Sebituane for a friend and ally, it would be 
productive of great good in his missionary labors and of 
much assistance in pushing his geographical researches 
through the country. As it was, he had fixed upon Sebit- 
uane's head village as the point at which to plant his next 
mission station ; and he was therefore much disappointed 
when the treachery of Lechulatebe prevented him from 
reaching the great chief on his first visit to the lake region. 
Lechulatebe will be remembered as the chief of the Ba- 
tauana, and as the one who had sent messengers to Living- 
stone previous to his leaving Kolobeng, with the request that 
he would visit his domain. From the extreme cordiality and 
insistence of the message, the travelers expected handsome 
treatment at Lechulatebe's hands. But it seems that he was 
a shrewd and covetous negro, whose real design was to secure 
some of the presents he had heard Livingstone was in the 
habit of bestowiug upon the chiefs of the different tribes 
through which he passed. When he found out that Liv- 
ingstone wanted to take up his residence with Sebituane for 
awhile, he stoutly opposed it, for several reasons. Chief of 
these was that Sebituane was an enemy of his, and much 
hated on account of his great power and popularity. Lechu- 
latebe therefore had no idea of letting Livingstone reach 
Sebituane, and perhaps furnish him with fire-arms, show 
him their use, and teach him the many tricks of battle 
which the white men knew 7 . In that event, Sebituane 
would become a more formidable enemy than ever. So he 
not only refused to let Livingstone have guides and boats, 



LIFE OP DAVID LIVINGSTON *\ 109 



but sent men to guard the river to prevent the missionary 
and his party from crossing, in ease they attempted to go 
upon their own responsibility. 

Not to be outdone, and with his usual courage and bold- 
ness, Livingstone began the construction of a boat or raft 
out of the great quantities of rotten wood floating in the 
river. This he did at the imminent risk of his life, for he 
soon afterward found out that the Zouga was infested with 
alligators. However, the wood proved to be so rotten, and 
the other difficulties so insurmountable, that he abandoned 
his present intention of pushing on to Sebituane; but that 
he had not abandoned the purpose altogether the sequel will 
show. 

Thus it came about that, on making his arrangements for 
this second journey into the lake country, Livingstone's de- 
termination to reach Sebituane was fixed, and he made up 
his mind that he would succeed if it lay within human 
power. On this second trip he was accompanied by his wife 
and children — the latter now three in number — Sechele, 
and twenty of his most faithful Bak wains. The party left 
Kolobeng in April, 1850. It was with many misgivings 
that Livingstone saw his delicate wife and tender little 
ones start out on this long and fearful journey across the 
desert; but he could not bear the idea of leaving them be- 
hind, especially as he did not know when he would return 
to Kolobeng. So, commending them to the keeping of that 
great and loving Father who takes note of the tiniest bird's 
flight, Livingstone bravely set forth. 

The difficulties in the way on the second journey were 
many and great. Again and again Livingstone felt that 
he would be obliged to retrace his steps to Kolobeng. Hear- 
ing various reports of the deadly ravages of the tsetse fly, 



110 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



whose bite is so fatal to oxen, the party had to choose a 
route quite different from the one gone over the preceding 
year; consequently, they often lost their way, and were in 
great straits besides. The sufferings of Mrs. Livingstone 
and the children were intense, and Livingstone felt that 
he could not bear to witness them. When they struck the 
banks of the Zouga, it was at a point where the trees were 
so thick that the men had to cut down numbers of them to 
let the wagons pass through. The journey at this stage was 
therefore both slow and laborious. But at last the shores 
of the lake were reached. The intense delight with which 
his children hailed the sight of this wonderful sheet of wa- 
ter deeply touched Livingstone. Tears came to his eyts as 
he heard their shouts of childish joy. When he took them 
upon the lake in a boat, their spirits nearly ran away with 
them. They could scarcely get enough of it. " They took 
to playing in it as naturally as ducklings," he wrote, " while 
as to the paddling, it was the greatest fun they had ever 
known." And no wonder, poor little things! This was 
the first body of water of any consequence they had ever 
seen. 

At the lake were found a party of Englishmen who had 
been stricken with fever. One of them had already died, 
and doubtless others would have died but for the timely 
ministrations of Dr. Livingstone and his gentle wife. Just 
as the fever had considerably abated among them, and Liv- 
ingstone, with Sechele's aid, was preparing to enter the 
country of Sebituane, two of his children were stricken 
with the dread malady, and for days lay at the point of 
death. Finding that the whole lake region was exposed to 
the scourge, Livingstone decided to return to Kolobeng, 
there to remain until the country should be entirely free 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. Ill 



from the fever. This he did as soon as the children were 
able to stand the fatigue of travel. 

While staying at the lake Livingstone's friend and fel- 
low-traveler of the year before, Mr. Oswell, had appeared 
among them. They were rejoiced to see each other again. 
Oswell had remained at the lake to hunt elephants. His 
courage in hunting them without dogs excited the wonder 
and admiration of the natives. But high as was their opin- 
ion of Os well's bravery, it was even higher in regard to 
Livingstone's. They believed him to be the coolest and 
most courageous man they had ever seen. They often said 
to him: " If you were not a missionary, you would be just 
like Oswell. You would not hunt with dogs either, and 
you would bring down just as many elephants as he, if not 
more; neither would you be afraid of any thing." 

On Livingstone's return from the lake he found bad news 
awaiting him. During his absence the Boers had made good 
their long-standing threats against Sechele, and entering his 
village had killed a number of his people, and carried away 
two hundred children into captivity. They had also plun- 
dered the chief's and Livingstone's houses, cutting up the 
latter's few articles of wooden furniture, smashing his stone- 
ware, and tearing his clothes and those of his wife and chil- 
dren into shreds. But worst of all, they had so mutilated 
his books and manuscripts as to render them utterly 
worthless. All the literary work of three years, includ- 
ing his journals, was thus ruthlessly destroyed. This wls 
a severe blow to Livingstone; but when he heard the poor 
women weeping over their dead and bewailing the chil- 
dren carried into captivity, he thought how much worse u # 
might have been for him, and thanked God that he Lad 
escaped so lightly. 



112 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTON!:. 



In the early part of April, 1851, Livingstone started on 
his third, last, and only successful expedition to meet Sebit- 
uane. On this journey he was accompanied by his family 
and his old friend, Mr. Oswell. Livingstone often speaks 
with touching gratitude of the generosity and kindness 
shown by this fellow-countryman of his. A number of 
Bushmen, employed by Mr. Oswell specially for the pur- 
pose, attended them as an advance guard. Their duty 
was to go ahead of the party, clearing dense places and 
smoothing rough ones as much as possible, but principally 
to dig wells and search out pasturage for the cattle. In 
this way the dreary passage of the desert was greatly alle- 
viated. 

Many of the great plains on the route were covered with 
stretches of grass, though often not having one stunted tree. 
In these places ostriches were seen in large numbers. Be- 
ing very shy, they would of course run off at first sight of 
our travelers. It was therefore extremely difficult to get a 
close view of them, while a shot at one was well-nigh im- 
possible. The moment the travelers showed themselves the 
ostrich would flee, and all the game in the neighborhood 
would take the alarm and run with him. The Bushmen, 
however, had an ingenious way of getting ahead of the bird 
that was amusing to the concealed lookers-on. It interested 
Livingstone very much, and his children were perfectly car- 
ried away watching the strange maneuvers. Whitening his 
legs with a preparation taken along for that purpose, and 
fastening across his shoulders a feathered saddle made of 
the plumage of the birds, the Bushman would start off, car- 
rvin<r the stuffed head of an ostrich in one hand and his 
bow and poisoned arrows in the other. Thus equipped, he 
presented a striking likeness to the great, stalking bird he 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 113 



was ready to beguile. Cautiously moving along, the " hu- 
man bird " would make a feint of picking away at the grass, 
just as the real ostrich was doing. Then he would turn his 
head to one side, to gain a better idea of the position of the 
real bird. Next he would shake out his saddle of feathers, 
with a movement that ought surely to have put the genuine 
ostrich to the blush — it was so perfect an imitation. Then, 
circling around slowly for a few moments, he would sud- 
denly start into a brisk walk, which gradually grew faster 
until he struck off at the ostrich's well-known long, swing- 
ing trot. In this manner the wily hunter soon brought 
himself within shooting distance of the unsuspecting bird; 
and before the latter could discover the fraud, or realize 
his danger, whizz! would go the arrow, and the next in- 
stant he would be in his death-throes! 

Sometimes the male ostrich, which is of a more wary and 
suspicious nature than the female, would turn and give 
chase to this strange-looking bird; and the situation would 
become extremely dangerous for the hunter, unless he kept 
his wits about him. If he wished to kill the bird, his one 
object when pursued by him was to keep him from catching 
the scent; failing in this, the fraud would be exposed. On 
the other hand, if he wished to preserve his own life when 
the bird came uncomfortably near, his only safeguard was 
either to " get to windward," as the hunters say, and let 
the bird catch the scent, or throw off the saddle of feathers 
and stand revealed in his proper form. But occasionally 
his great anxiety to bring down the valuable bird would 
lead him to neglect the precautions until too late, when a 
stroke from the powerful wing would almost instantly de- 
prive him of life. 

That the Bushmen, in spite of the many drawbacks and 
8 




(114) 



.LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 11.) 



the patience and perseverance necessary, were very success- 
ful in their slaughter of the ostriches, Livingstone had seen 
the evidence in the great quantities of feathers sold to pass- 
ing traders. As the ostriches have only a few feathers on 
the wings and tail, he knew it took a large number of the 
birds to produce the plumes the Bushmen annually col- 
lected. Our travelers found the Bushmen of the utmost 
service in the journey across the desert. Indeed, it is ques- 
tionable if they would have survived the perils, depriva- 
tions, and sufferings that beset them, had it not been for 
their trusty advance guard, who, among other things, could 
discover water when for miles about them seemed to stretch 
a burning and sandy waste. Yet, with all the precautions 
which the generous and manly Oswell had taken, a calami- 
ty that nearly proved fatal to all befell the party when 
they were about two-thirds of the distance across the Kal- 
ahari. In some way Shobo, their guide, got them widely . 
separated from their Bushmen guard. They found them- 
selves in one of the driest and .most desolate parts of the 
desert. For miles and miles there was not a particle of 
verdure, not even a scraggy cjump of the hardy karoo 
bush; no sign of life anywhere; no sound, not so much as 
the lonesome cry of a jackal, or the forbidding hiss of a 
serpent. What meager tufts of grass they chanced upon 
crumbled to powder in their hands, so well had the scorch- 
ing heat done its work. The burning sun seemed to be 
licking up the blood from their veins, and to their eyes the 
glare was well-nigh unendurable. Men and animals suf- 
fered not only from the heat, but from thirst; for the sup- 
ply of water had given out — there was not a drop even to 
moisten the tongues of the little children, who lay in the 
bottom of the wagon, either begging piteously for water or 



116 LIFE OF DAVJD LIVINGSTONE. 



too weak to do more than lie and gasp, with their black- 
ened tongues protruding from their mouths. 

It surely w ? as most distressing to the strong husband and 
father to see his delicate wife and babies undergoing such 
horrible suffering. His own throat was parched and burn- 
ing, his own tongue swollen and blackened ; but with prayer 
after prayer to God for succor, he toiled on beside the wagon. 
The poor beasts, whose piteous bello wings added to the hor- 
rors and distress of the scene, staggered from side to side as 
though they would fall to the ground. For four days they 
were absolutely without water. Livingstone says of this 
dreadful time: " The thought of our children perishing be- 
fore our eyes was terrible; it would almost have been a re- 
lief to have been reproached w T ith being the entire cause of 
the catastrophe, but not one syllable of upbraiding was ut- 
tered by their mother, though the tearful eye told the agony 
within." 

Happily, on the morning of the fifth day the Bushmen 
found them ; and as they brought a supply of the precious 
fluid for the want of which life had come so near being for- 
feited, the greater sufferings of the w r anderers were allayed. 

Finally, after enduring much additional fatigue, and en- 
countering many more hardships— though none so dreadful 
as that awful time when they had gone four days without 
water — they came to the banks of the Mahabe, a river that 
flows into the Tamunakle. As by following the banks of 
the latter stream they hoped to reach Sebituane's domains, 
it was with joy that they came upon the Mahabe, knowing 
that its junction with the Tamunakle could not be very far 
away. But before reaching the banks of the Mahabe they 
had made the acquaintance of a visitor whose presence 
would in time have a fatal effect. This was the much- 



LIFE OP DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 117 



heard-of and long-dreaded tsetse fly, whose bite is so de- 
structive to the life of horse, oxen, and dog. Upon man 
and the wild animals, strange to say, it has no effect; in 
fact, it never even offers to molest them. The tsetse is not 
much larger than the common house-fly, though somewhat 
different in shape, and considerably so in color. It resem- 
bles the honey-bee, having the same deep-brown coat, with 
yellow bars across the under part of the body. Its peculiar 
buzz, very much like that of the bumble-bee, is never for- 
gotten by the traveler who once hears it. 

Livingstone did not at first think that his oxen were 
much injured, as he could see no signs of the evil effects of 
the tsetse bites: he had yet to learn, through dear experi- 
ence, that these effects come on gradually, rendering it all 
the more terrible to the poor brutes who have the deadly 
poison in their veins. It is several days after the animal 
is bitten before it shows the first symptoms, which consist of 
a watery gleam about the eye and an unpleasant discharge 
from the nose. Then is noticed a constant shivering sen- 
sation, or a nervous drawing together of the coat at regular 
intervals, principally along the backbone, as though the 
animal was suffering from cold. A swelling next appeal's 
under the jaws; and although the ox, or horse, can go on 
grazing as usual, he grows poorer and poorer, as if he did 
not receive any nourishment whatever from the food swal- 
lowed. Finally, he becomes so emaciated and weak that he 
dies from sheer exhaustion. It is generally a month from 
the time the animal is bitten until death ensues. 

Reaching the banks of the Chobe River, which borders 
upon Sebituane's domains, our travelers received the pleas- 
ing intelligence that Sebituane, hearing of their proposed 
visit, was coming to meet them. Ho had already traveled 



118 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



over a hundred miles from his capital city to do honor to 
the brave missionary of whose noble labors among the dif- 
ferent tribes he had heard so much. When the news of his 
approach became known, he was but twenty miles away, 
at the village of Manuku, and anxiously awaiting their 
arrival. 

In a little while the meeting with Sebituane took place. 
His greeting was all that they could have wished it, and he 
himself all that they had expected, and much more. Al- 
most his first words to them showed the great, warm heart 
beating under the leopard-skin cloak. Noticing the condi- 
tion of Livingstone's cattle, he exclaimed : " Too bad ! Too 
bad! Your cattle are all bitten by the tsetse, and will sure- 
ly die! They are nearly dead now, poor things! But 
never mind; I have plenty of oxen, and will give you all 
you need." 

Sebituane was unquestionably a great chief — " the best 
specimen of native manhood I ever met," said Livingstone 
in speaking of him afterward. All the way they had heard 
Sebituane's praises sounded. Even his enemies had given 
expression to their admiration for his wonderful powers; 
but the highest testimony came from those he had befriended. 
"He is invincible; he is never conquered in battle," said 
those against whom he had fought. " He is good ; he has 
a heart" gratefully declared those to whom his bounty had 
been extended. 

In person the great chief was tall and wiry, with a 
well-shaped head for one of his race; a kindly, pleasant ex- 
pression; and fine, intelligent eyes. His bearing was frank 
and manly — quite unusual in a savage. 

Sebituane had not been born a chief. He was originally 
from the country around Kuruman, where his many excel- 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 119 



lent traits had won for him a following of stanch admir- 
ers. Having some trouble with his people on account of 
his independent ways, he had left his tribe, and with a 
few sturdy adherents had boldly cut his way through the 
entire Bechuana country. As he went along so many at- 
tached themselves to him that by the time he had entered 
the territory on the other side of the Kalahari he had twice 
the. 11 umber of his own tribe. A desperate struggle ensued 
between him and Mosilikatse, a renowned Matebele chief, 
for the possession of all that magnificent stretch of country 
lying between the Zouga and the Zambesi. In the end Se- 
bituane was triumphant, which w 7 as the means of secur- 
ing to him a stronger following than ever. He was now 
deemed the greatest chief in all that section, dreaded eveu 
by the terrible Mosilikatse, the oppressor of the Bechu- 
anas. 

It would seem impossible to believe that a warlike chief 
such as Sebituane could have so warm a heart, so benevo- 
lent a nature; yet so it was. When he went into battle he 
was but following out the impulses of his savage nature 
and obeying the mandates of his savage training — since 
through that nature and that training he had been taught 
to look upon courage and success in war as the highest 
marks of distinction, the most admirable attributes of un- 
civilized royalty. He saw no cruelty, no barbarity in such 
a course — only praise and renown; for he had not been en- 
lightened as to the gentler and more peaceful teachings ot 
civilized humanity, or the higher and nobler aims of. Chris- 
tianity. What he might have been under more favorable 
opportunities was shown by the manly traits underlying his 
whole character. He was gentle mid generous, benevolent 
to the poor, and honest even in his dealings with enemies. 



120 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



His hospitality and genuine kindness of heart were proverb- 
ial throughout the whole river country. Says Livingstone: 
" He was adored by all with whom he came in contact." 
The poor of the different tribes were constantly coming to 
him for assistance. Not once was such an applicant turned 
away. " When a party of poor men came to his town to 
sell their hoes or hides," Livingstone further adds, "no 
matter how ungainly they might be, he soon knew them all. 
A company of these indigent strangers, sitting far apart 
from the Makololo around the chief, would be surprised to 
see him come alone to tlrem, and,- sitting down, inquire if 
they were hungry. On receiving an affirmative reply, he 
would order an attendant to bring meal, milk, and honey; 
and mixing these in their sight, in order to remove any sus- 
picions from their minds, he would make them feast upon a 
lordly dish perhaps for the first time in their lives. De- 
lighted beyond measure with his affability and liberality, 
they felt their hearts warm toward him, and gave him all the 
information in their power. As he never allowed a party 
of strangers, servants included, to go away without giving 
them a present, his praises were sounded far and wide." 

Sebituane was delighted at the confidence which Living- 
stone had shown by bringing his wife and children. He at 
once promised him a permanent settlement in his domains, 
authority to go anywhere he pleased, and an escort for all 
expeditions he cared to make. 

It had been the greatest dream of Sebituane's life to be 
on intimate and friendly terms with the white men. Un- 
like the majority of his savage brethren, he had the highest 
opinion of the superior •condition and abilities of the white 
race, especially of the English. No wonder, then, that he 
hailed Livingstone's coming among his people with such 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 121 



hearty pleasure, for it gave to his dream a brighter and a 
more beautiful radiance — the radiance of reality. Living- 
stone, too, looked upon this meeting with Sebituane as the 
dawning of a new and auspicious era, both as regarded his 
missionary labors aud his geographical researches. With 
Sebituane's powerful protection ever about him, he would 
be enabled to command a wider and more inviting extent 
of territory than any he had yet known. But alas! it was 
not to be. In less than two weeks after their meeting the 
great chief was stricken down with inflammation of the 
lungs, from which he died in a few days. He lived just long 
enough to hear Livingstone preach one sermon, the Sunday 
after his arrival in the country. This was the only procla- 
mation of " glad tidings" poor Sebituane ever heard. On 
the Sunday afternoon that he died, Livingstone went to see 
him, carrying his little son Robert. " Come near/' said 
Sebituane as soon as he recognized Livingstone, " and sac 
if I am any longer a man. No, I am not. I feel that I 
am not. I am undone! Alas! is me; I can no longer even 
move myself as I might wish." He seemed fully sensible 
of his dangerous condition, and realized that death might 
come at any moment; but he was calm and brave through 
it all. 

Taking the hand of the dying chief in his, Livingstone 
knelt by the couch of skins, and endeavored to speak com- 
forting words — to tell him of .the hope there is after death 
for all who trust. But the pall of darkness that had so 
long covered poor Sebituane's soul was too heavy to be 
lifted in a moment. It would have taken months perhaps 
for him "even to have begun to see clearly, and now there 
were but a few hours. One of the native doctors, who was 
standing near, catching the word "death," turned upon 



122 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTON K. 



Livingstone, demanding: "Why do you speak of death? 
Sebituane will never die. It is not for sueh as he to leave 
this world where he is so much needed. Do not say the 
word to him again, lest you disturb him." Thus did they 
believe, these adoring people of his, that their great chief 
could not be otherwise than immortal — so mighty were his 
deeds, so matchless his powers. 

Noting the ominous expression on the faces around him, 
and catching many murmurs of disapproval, Livingstone 
refrained, though sorely against his will, from speaking fur- 
ther to Sebituane in regard to death, " fearing," as lie adds, 
'• that if T had persisted the impression would have been 
produced that by speaking to him of death I wished him to 
die." For the same reason Livingstone was also afraid to 
give Sebituane medical attention; for if he failed to cure, 
he would assuredly be charged with killing the chief. Then 
the people in the first agony of their loss would doubtless 
have put him and his family to death. It surely must have 
been one of the most trying and painful experiences through 
which Livingstone had ever been called to pass. Had he 
been alone in the country, he would have faced the situa- 
tion unflinchingly, and have fearlessly ministered to the 
needs of Sebituane's body and soul. But there were his 
gentle wife and helpless little ones to think of, and for their 
sakes he drew back. So, all that he could do was to offer 
up a silent yet fervent prayer to God in Sebituane's behalf. 
While the words were yet rushing from Livingstone's over- 
charged heart, Sebituane raised himself upon his elbow, and 
glancing tenderly at Livingstone's little son, said to one of 
his attendants: " Take Robert to Maunku [one of his wives], 
and tell her to give him some milk." These words, expressing 
kindly thought for another, were the last the great chief 



LIFE OP DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 123 



ever uttered. Surely so brave, so beautiful a soul was not 
shut out from the light of its Father's mansions, because of 
the very darkness that had so long shrouded it here. 

Thus Sebituane died almost within view of the great spir- 
itual light that was about to dawn upon him. This seemed to 
distress Livingstone more than any thing else. Constantly 
before him was the reproach: " I surely did not do all that 
I could have done for poor Sebituane. There were many 
opportunities I might have embraced even in that short 
space of time. O if I had but known that death was so 
near, would I not have utilized every moment, nay every 
second, in preparing him for the end?" His lament over 
Sebituane, when he saw the great chief lying dead before 
him, was as touching in its overwhelming tenderness and ago- 
nized pathos as David's lament for Absalom : " Poor Sebit- 
uane, my heart bleeds for thee; and what would I not do for 
thee now? I will weep for thee to the day of my death! 
Little didst thou think, when in the visit of the white man 
thou sawest the long-cherished desire of years accomplished, 
that the sentence of death had gone forth. Thou though test 
that thou shouldst procure a weapon from the white man 
which would shield thee from the attacks of the fierce Ma- 
tebele; but a more deadly dart (ban theirs was aimed at 
thee f and though thou couldst well ward off a dart — none 
ever better — thou didst not see that of the king of terrors. 
I will weep for thee, my brother, and I would cast forth my 
sorrows in despair for thy condition. But I know that thou 
wilt receive no injustice whither thou art gone. Shall not 
the Judge of all the earth do right? I leave thee \o him. 
Alas, alas, Sebituane! I might have said more to him. 
God forgive me, and free me from blood-guiltiness! " 



CHAPTER IX. 



MAMOCHISANE SUCCEEDS SEBITUANE— HER GRACIOUSNESS TO LIV- 
INGSTONE — LIVINGSTONE AND OSWELL MAKE A SHORT JOURNEY 
OF EXPLORATION — DISCOVERY OF THE ZAMBESI — THE CHARM- 
ING RIVER COUNTRY — THE ABUNDANCE OF ANIMAL LIFE — LIV- 
INGSTONE'S TENDER HEART — A PATHETIC SCENE. 



SEBITUANE was succeeded in the chieftainship by 
his daughter, Mamochisane. She was a very intelli- 
gent and kindly disposed young savage, with many of her 
father's nobler traits of character, though with little of his 
governing ability. 

Livingstone received permission from Mamochisane to 
visit any part of her domain he desired. She* also kindly 
proposed to furnish him with an escort at any time. Leav- 
ing his wife and children under Mamochisane's protection, 
Livingstone, with his friend Mr. Oswell and twenty of the 
Makololo men — as Sebituane's people were known — began 
a short exploration into the country. They took a north- 
easterly direction, and proceeded toward the town of Lin- 
yanti, on the Chobe River, about one hundred and thirty 
miles distant. Linyanti was the capital city of the Mako- 
lolo, and was the point from which Sebituane had started 
to meet Livingstone. Passing through Linyanti, Living- 
stone and his companions kept on north-eastwardly, and on 
the third day of August came upon a magnificent river, 
right in the heart of the continent, and flowing, as they 
afterward discovered, " almost from sea to sea." This was 
the Zambesi, known by the natives of that section as the 
(124) 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 125 



Sesheke. Although it was in the dry season, the breadth 
of the river was not less than three hundred yards at any 
point— at many places it was more than six hundred yards. 
The current was very deep and strong. Livingstone's ex- 
clamation on beholding this ^majestic stream was, " How 
glorious! How magnificent! How beautiful! " while Os- 
well enthusiastically declared, "Not even in India have I 
seen so fine a river! " The natives told them that, like the 
Nile, the Zambesi had its annual overflows, often rising- 
twenty to twenty-five feet, and flooding the lands for fifteen 
miles on each side of the stream. When Livingstone's party 
were crossing, the current, that leaped about in miniature 
waves, lifted up their canoes and made them " roll beauti- 
fully." Livingstone thought it one of the prettiest sights he 
had ever beheld. The scenery along the banks was grand 
beyond description. Livingstone feelingly declared that it 
was even more beautiful than his own firths of Forth, and 
Clyde, of which it forcibly reminded hi in. So deeply did 
it impress him that he felt the tears welling as his thoughts 
wandered back to his home so far away in " Bonnie Scot- 
land." But he manfully restrained the emotions, and with 
a great effort kept back the tears; "for if I had not," he 
humorously remarks, "the old man who was conducting us 
over might have said, ' What on earth are you blubbering 
for? Afraid of the crocodiles, eh?"' With such light 
bits of digressive humor as this Livingstone often sought 
to hide his deeper feelings. 

In writing to his brother Charles about the discovery of 
the Zambesi, Livingstone rapturously affirmed that it- 
was the first real river he had ever seen. Again and again 
he heard of most wonderful rapids some miles above and of 
great water-falls below. Both he and Oswell felt a keen 



126 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



desire to go on a voyage of discovery in each direction, and 
would doubtless have clone so had not their time been lim- 
ited. Livingstone's great object in coming to Liny an ti and 
the country surrounding it had been to find a healthy and 
convenient locality in which to plant a mission station, and 
lie felt that he could undertake no further expedition until 
that vexed question was satisfactorily settled. On a future 
visit, however, Livingstone beheld the great Victoria Falls, 
named by him in honor of his Queen, and which is looked 
upon by many as his most important geographical discovery. 
Livingstone and Oswell found the country around the 
Zambesi, as it had been about the Zouga, extremely pro- 
lific of animal life. The forests abounded with game of 
every description, and the river with fish of various kinds. 
All along the banks were the most magnificent trees they 
had ever seen, among them numbers of the " machabell- 
tree/.' that bore quantities of a large yellow fruit, something 
like the plum in its nature, only much larger, with enor- 
mous stones, and very refreshing in quality. The leaves 
of this tree were exceedingly beautiful and glossy, and the 
tree itself presented a most charming sight. It was the " fa- 
vorite food of the elephant," as evidences of a recent visit 
from these beasts were soon discovered. Indeed, so nu- 
merous were the elephants in this region that it was not 
uncommon to see them in vast droves even in the close 
neighborhood of the villages. The natives made constant 
war upon them, a party of hunters often bringing down 
eight or ten of them on one hunt; but with all this slaugh- 
ter they did not seem to decrease. To obtain the valuable 
tusks was of course the hunter's principal object; though 
the heart of the beast, when cooked after a style peculiar 
to the native African, was a great delicacy. The Makolo- 




A DISASTROUS ELEPHANT HUNT. 



(127 






128 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



lo enjoyed an extensive trade in ivory, getting in exchange 
for it beads, tobacco, pipes, knives, and other similar arti- 
cles. Buffaloes, elands, water-bucks, koodoos, rhinoceroses, 
and many other animals, abounded; but the elephant was 
the most coveted reward of the hunter's efforts. Sometimes 
these elephant hunts would end most disastrously. The in- 
furiated beasts, maddened by the pain of the spear- wounds, 
would charge upon their assailants, trampling them with 
their huge feet or tossing the life out of them by one swing 
of their mighty trunk. 

The lion, that terrible king of beasts, was often seen ; but 
he did not terrify the natives, as he generally does those un- 
used to meeting him. Livingstone learned from the Mako- 
lolo many things in regard to the lion he had not known 
before. It has been a popular belief that the lion would 
always make the first attack upon a man, even if the latter 
showed no disposition to molest him. Livingstone, with all 
his experience in the country, was of this opinion too; but 
the Makololo soon convinced him that the lion rarely at- 
tacks a man first. However, this is true only during the 
day-time, or on a clear moonlight night. On a dark night 
there is much danger, unless the hunter or traveler can be 
surrounded by a glare of light. It was also generally sup- 
posed that the lion was the master of every other beast of 
the forest. The Makololo showed Livingstone many proofs 
to the contrary. In the rhinoceros, elephant, and buffalo 
the lion had more than his match, and often his equal in 
the giraffe — one blow from the small but powerful hoof of 
the latter animal being all that was necessary to crush in 
the lion's head as though it were an egg-shell. The lion 
himself seemed aware of his danger from these animals, and 
would never be seen willin^lv near either of them. 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 129 



Close to one of the villages where Livingstone and his 
party stopped there was a beautiful ford, to which the buf- 
faloes went in great herds to drink. Occasionally a lion 
would go thither. Once Livingstone saw a medium-sized 
buffalo bull catch an unusually large and strong-looking 
lion, and kill him outright by one toss of the horns. At 
the mere sight of an elephant the lion would often turn and 
flee; though sometimes, doubtless when suffering the pangs 
of hunger, he would creep upon and devour a young calf 
that had happened to stray from its mother. 

Livingstone gives us this picture of a near acquaintance 
with the lion: " When a lion is met in the day-time, a cir- 
cumstance by no means unfrequent to travelers in these 
parts, if preconceived notions do not lead them to expect 
something very noble or majestic, they will see merely an 
animal somewhat larger than the biggest dog they ever saw, 
and partaking very strongly of the canine features; the 
face is not much like the usual drawings of a lion, the nose 
being much prolonged like a dog's; not exactly like such 
as the painters paint it — though they might learn better 
at the Zoological Gardens — their ideas of majesty being 
usually shown by making their lions' faces like old wom- 
en in night-caps. When encountered in the day-time, 
the lion stands a second or two, gazing, then turns slowly 
around, and walks as slowly away for a dozen paces, look- 
ing over h[s shoulder; then he begins to trot, and, when he 
thinks himself out of sight, bounds off like a greyhound." 
But when first molested, or angered in any way, the lion 
will fight to the death, as Livingstone knew only too well 
from painful experience. 

The true king of the African forests was the rhinoceros. 
Even the elephant feared its approach, and would try to 
9 




(1°>0) 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTON J •:. 131 



get beyond its reach. Indeed, every animal seemed to 
stand in mortal terror of the rhinoceros; and no wonder! 
With one blow of its sharp horn, or horns — for there were 
some varieties with two — it had been known to split a tree 
asunder. The consequence of such a stroke to an animal's 
body may well be imagined. Livingstone's party witnessed 
a fearful encounter between an elephant and a rhinoceros, 
in which the former was completely disemboweled by one 
thrust of the death-dealing horn. 

In the neighborhood of the Zambesi Livingstone saw for 
the first time a new species of the water-buck, which the 
natives called leche. It was a superb creature, with fine 
ringed horns "bending outward and inward," quite unlike 
the gemsbok of more southern Africa, whose beautiful long 
horns point straight over its back with the regularity and 
precision of guardsmen's muskets. Unlike the gemsbok, 
too — whose coat "throughout is of an intermingled black 
and gray — the stomach and chest of the leche, together 
with a broad patch over the eyes, are nearly all of a pure 
white, only here and there a fleck of gray shading off into 
a soft brown. The remainder of the body is of a light 
brown, except the limbs, which are of a darker hue. The 
male leche is distinguished from the female by a handsome 
mane resembling that of the gnu, but thicker, smoother, 
and finer in every way. 

Though he had ample opportunities to go in pursuit ot 
game, and was fond of vigorous exercise, Livingstone en- 
gaged in hunting only when the flesh was needed for food. 
To him it appeared cruel in the extreme to slaughter inno- 
cent and defenseless animals for the mere love of the sport. 
Daily his great, kind heart was pained by the wholesale 
butchery he saw going on around him. Indeed, one of his 



132 LIFE OF* DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



biographers remarks that " so overflowing was his well of 
human kindness he seems to have regretted the death of 
even the very lion or alligator that was about to make a 
mouthful of him." With a heart so tender, he could not 
but be deeply moved and pained by witnessing the incident 
about to be related. 

One evening, after a long and hard day's march, our 
travelers stopped to arrange their camp for the night at 
the head of a beaitfiful grass-covered plain, out of which 
rose here and there a low, cup-shaped hill. At many 
places there were pools of crystal \vater t left by the rain. 
Besides the tall, rich grass, there was no verdure save at 
varied intervals a few clumps of the flat-topped and bushy- 
growing mimosa. The hills, however, were covered with 
dense clusters of the " idoro " bush, interspersed with 
patches of the " watch-en-bechen," or " stop-awhile " thorn. 
At the commencement of this beautiful, park-like plain 
there was a luxuriant forest of " machabell " and " maino- 
sho" trees, the latter very tall and magnificently propor- 
tioned, and bearing a fruit like the walnut in appearance, 
and not unlike it in taste and in the outer hull and inner 
shell. In the shade of these trees, and near a pool of clear 
water, the camping-place was prepared. The next morn- 
ing, as Livingstone stood upon the summit of one of the 
lulls about a half-mile from the camp, making observations 
through his telescope, he beheld, near the center of the val- 
ley, about a mile and a half distant, an unusually large ele- 
phant cow with her calf. The calf was rolling in one of 
the pools of water, which Livingstone could see had been 
made quite muddy by the plunges of the little animal. The 
mother was standing by the side of the pool contentedly 
fanning herself with her long ears, and gazing with mater- 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 133 

nal pride and pleasure upon her offspring. It was a pretty 
picture, which Livingstone contemplated with feelings of 
appreciation. But suddenly he descried some of his men, 
whom he supposed were at that moment lounging about the 
camp, cautiously approaching the elephant and calf from 
the rear. Totally unconscious of danger, the proud and 
happy mother-elephant continued the flapping of her long 
ears and watched the demonstrations of her big, noisy baby. 
Directly, while the men were creeping nearer and nearer, 
she went into the pool and stood there spouting the water 
from her great trunk in gentle showers over the body of the 
calf, who returned the sport by throwing diminutive jets 
from its own baby trunk over its mother with apparently 
the greatest enjoyment. As she stood there wagging her 
tail from side to side, and playing at fireman's hose with 
her calf, it did Livingstone good to gaze upon the scene. 
But there were the approaching men, and his heart grew 
sick as he foresaw the slaughter soon to take place. He 
knew that he could not save the elephant, even if he were 
with the men, as the natives were too covetous of the ivory 
to heed his commands; yet lie felt that if he were nearer 
he might do something to save the poor little calf. He de- 
termined to make an effort, though he was at so great a 
distance. Calling an attendant, Livingstone bade him run 
as fast as he could and tell the men to spare the calf; but 
as he <mve the message he doubted whether the attendant 
could reach the spot in time. It was fully a mile and a 
half the way he had to go; besides, he was an old man, and, 
like the majority of his race, not much given to fast run- 
ning unless fleeing from danger. The messenger dispatched, 
Livingstone once more turned his glass upon the scene at 
the pool. The men were within fifty or sixty paces of the an- 



134 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



imal, and be could catch from their movements that they 
were beginning the pipings and the sarcastic salutation that 
usually preceded an attack. The piping was accomplished 
by blowing into reeds or between the fingers of the hands 
locked together. After piping a few moments, and thor- 
oughly attracting the attention of the animals, the men be- 
gan their chant, which was something like this: " O chief! 
O chief! O chief of a great tribe, we have come to kill you ! 
Start not, and gaze at us with thy wide, round eyes, for this 
which we say is of a truth. We have come to lay you low, 
you of a mighty following, and we bold men and brave! O 
chief! O chief! O chief, thou shalt die; but not thou alone, 
but many more with thee! All those of your race that 
come within reach of our spears. It must be done. The 
gods have said it, and we have said it, therefore is there no 
falling back. O chief! O chief! prepare, then, to die!" 

As the sounds of the first shrill piping fell upon their ears, 
both animals rushed from the pool and turned as if to flee. 
The calf did get several paces in front of its mother, but, 
catching sight of the advancing men, returned in great fear. 
Reaching out her huge proboscis, the mother-elephant drew 
the trembling calf nearer her side and held it there, to reas- 
sure the frightened young creature, as well as to shield it 
from' danger. Xext she worked herself around until she 
stood between the calf and the men, then began to move 
slowly but steadily away, working the calf along in front of 
her. Every now and then she would give the timid and 
frightened little creature a caressing stroke with her trunk, 
seemingly to bid it keep up its courage. While thus seek- 
ing to get beyond the reach of the men, as well as to shield 
the calf from their darts, she kept looking back to see how 
they were gaining upon her. Occasionally she would sepa- 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 135 



rate herself from the calf and make a movement as if to 
return and attack the pursuers. Then, apparently think- 
ing better of it. and recalling the danger the calf would be 
in should she deprive it of the shield of her body, she would 
hug up nearer to it and endeavor to increase the onward 
progress. It was pitiful, as well as touching in the extreme, 
to watch the conflict between her anxiety to protect her 
offspring and her desire to attack, and put to rout if possi- 
ble, the on-coming slayers. The men could have charged 
upon her at once, but such did not seem to be their wish. 
Doubtless they had intended from the first to get her into 
a more favorable position, one in which all the advantage 
would be on their side. They kept within fifty or sixty 
paces of her, however, and continued their pipings and 
shoutings. Two or three hundred yards or more from the 
spot at which they had started her there was the bed of a 
partially dried river-course that formed here a somewhat 
steep depression. As she was going down the hitherward 
bank of the stream they suddenly charged upon her with 
fierce shouts, driving their spears, to the number of fifteen 
or more, into her body. The pain seemed for a moment to 
fairly madden her. Turning, with her sides dripping blood 
from nearly a score of wounds, she began making every ef- 
fort of which her waning strength was capable to carry her- 
self beyond the reach of her assailants, apparently for the 
moment having forgotten her calf. As she fled from it 
the frightened little creature gave a piteous bellow and 
sprung into the water. It was at once dispatched by the 
men. Hearing the cry of the calf, the dam stopped in- 
stantly in her wild flight, and wheeling suddenly, came 
plunging back toward it, shrieking with rage and fury. 
She at first headed straight for the calf, then, apparently 



136 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



changing her mind, changed her course also, and the next 
moment was charging full upon the men who were now 
standing in a cluster watching her movements. Seeing the 
animal approach with such mad determination, they imme- 
diately began scattering in every direction, falling over 
each other in their haste and terror. They were all so 
fortunate as to get out of her way except one poor fellow. 
As he wore a bright scarlet cloth twisted about his shoul- 
ders, he seemed to serve as the one particular target upon 
which the enraged beast had fastened all her attention. 
Heading straight for him — though he had turned and 
sought to protect himself behind a clump of scrubby mimo- 
sa — she caught her trunk within the gaudy folds of the 
cloth about his shoulders; then lifting her head high in 
the air, she lifted the unfortunate man with it, and the 
next moment, with a terrible shriek of rage, threw him at 
full length upon the ground — life no doubt becoming ex- 
tinct on the instant. As she turned to seek a second vic- 
tim, another shower of spears greeted her. This was too 
much for her already weakened condition through the pre- 
vious loss of blood. Leaping into the air with a spasmodic 
movement, she caught upon her feet, though unsteadily, and 
staggered from side to side, with the blood spouting in tor- 
rents from the fresh wounds she had received. For a mo- 
ment she reeled thus, like one drunken, then with a wild 
shriek of mortal pain sunk to a kneeling position. The 
next instant she fell over on her side, gave two or three 
convulsive lunges with her huge feet, and was dead. 

Livingstone did not witness the conclusion of this une- 
qual and cruel contest After the first shower of spears 
and the dispatch of the calf, he had turned away from the 
revolting spectacle, sick at heart, and made his way back 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. * lc 



to the camp. The messenger sent by him to save the calf, 
it is needless to add, did not arrive in time. The sick and 
pained feeling Livingstone carried back with him to the 
camp was in no wise relieved, he tells ns, even by the 
knowledge, afterward borne to him, that, as leader of the 
party, a portion of the ivory was his. Most gladly would 
he have put aside all selfish interests, and foregone any 
share of profit, to have looked to the last upon that happy 
scene as he had first gazed upon it before the cruel hunters 
had come to overwhelm it in blood and to quench it in 
death. Truly, " the bravest" are always "the tenderest; 
the loving, the most daring." 



CHAPTER X. 

A HORRIFYING INCIDENT — LIVINGSTONE HEART-SICK BECAUSE OF 
THE SLAVE-TRADE — HIS DETERMINATION TO FIND A REMEDY — 
A GIGANTIC UNDERTAKING — HE SENDS HIS FAMILY TO ENGLAND 
—HIS TOUCHING LETTERS TO THEM — THE PROPOSED MARCH 
FROM "SEA TO SEA" — ANOTHER ATTACK BY THE BOERS UPON 
SECHELE — THE INDIGNANT CHIEF'S INTENDED VISIT TO THE 
QUEEN. 

WHILE stopping at one of the towns along the 
course of the Zambesi, Livingstone met with an 
incident that changed the whole current of his after life.- 
As he and Oswell were the first white men to visit that re- 
gion, they were called upon by large numbers of natives. 
Among these visitors one day was a dandy-like young fel- 
low who came strutting into their presence, and wearing 
a gorgeously flowered dressing-gown. Livingstone was 
amused by the fellow's airs, yet surprised to find such 
goods upon the back of a savage in this remote corner of 
the Dark Continent. On making inquiries he was horri- 
fied to learn that the goods had been obtained from a tribe 
called the Manibari in exchange for some boys, turned over 
to them as slaves. Livingstone's horror and indignation 
were increased when he found that this man was one of Se- 
bituane's people. Pushing his investigations still farther, 
he was amazed and more thoroughly horror-stricken than 
ever to learn that only the year before the slave-trade had 
been fully organized in Sebituane's domains. 

How bitterly did Livingstone now regret the many mis- 
haps that had kept him from reaching Sebituane! Above 
(138) 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 139 



all, what a great calamity had been Sebituane's untimely 
death! He did not believe the good old chieftain had 
known of the existence of this evil in his country; but if 
he had, Livingstone felt that he could soon have obtained 
from him the help and encouragement needful to combat 
it. Livingstone must now battle alone in its overthrow; 
and such a battle as it was to be! Even the thought of 
it was enough to make the stoutest heart quail. Living- 
stone, however, gave no sign of drawing back, or of being 
dismayed. His abiding faith in God was to him a sure 
prophecy of success in the end. He knew that it was not 
to be the work of one mortal man, yet he would do as much 
as lay within his power. He not only felt this to be his 
present duty, but accepted it as his life-work, and took it 
up gladly. 

Though Livingstone had no knowledge of any natives 
selling members of their own families into slavery, many 
were the proofs of different tribes having sold the children 
of others to the Portuguese traders. And now came to 
him the master inspiration of his life — an inspiration that 
struck its firm roots into the very depths of his soul, and 
grew into a purpose from which not even the thought of 
wife and children could turn him. The spiritual as well as 
the moral welfare of the whole country depended upon his 
success in overcoming the evils of the slave-traffic. 

The one consuming desire of the African seemed to be to 
possess articles of European manufacture and commerce. 
Hence Livingstone believed that if he could open up a 
highway of traffic whereby goods might be brought into the 
country, and given in legitimate exchange for ivory and 
other articles of native production, a vise-like grasp would 
be gained upon the dread monster of shivery, and its throt- 



140 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



tling to the death would be but a matter of time. This 
highway Livingstone believed could be established through 
the Zambesi River, if it stretched from sea to sea, as claimed. 
But did it lead from sea to sea? This question he deter- 
mined to solve by exploring from one side of the continent 
to the other. It was a gigantic undertaking for one man, 
but Livingstone determined that he would make the at- 
tempt if it cost him his life. Better die nobly doing a duty, 
he thought, than to shrink like a coward from the mere re- 
port of danger, and live with the remembrance of obliga- 
tions ignobly shirked. How loudly that voice sounded in 
his ears! how thrilling the words, " Greater love than this 
hath no man, that he lay down his life for his friends!" 
Ah ! that was the key-note of Livingstone's whole coura- 
geous and unselfish life; and he struck it bravely, and held 
to it firmly, and sounded it broadly. No wonder it awak- 
ened all the minor chords of his own heart, and sent sweet, 
grand music into the hearts of others. 

What was to be done with Livingstone's wife and chil- 
dren ? They could not remain where they were, for Sebit- 
uane's death had been followed by ominous signs of revolt 
by the people he had so long and so judiciously governed. 
There was considerable opposition to Mamochisane, prin- 
cipally because she was a woman and her governing abil- 
ities were distrusted. Besides, some of the old warriors 
argued that if hostilities should arise she could not lead 
them into battle; or if she had sufficient courage to take 
command, she was unskilled in the art of war. It was a 
bad business from beginning to end, they declared, this put- 
ting of a woman, and a young woman at that, to rule over 
the Makololo; and they could not see why Sebituane had 
so ordered it. 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 141 



There was more or less com motion in various parts of the 
territory, and Livingstone felt that a serious outbreak 
might occur at no distant time, especially as a rival claim- 
ant to the chieftainship had appeared in the person of 
Mpepe, a half-brother of Mamochisane. Livingstone's old 
station at Kolobeng was also unsafe, owing to the near prox- 
imity of the Boers on one side and the Caffres on the other. 
He thought of repairing to Kuruman; but Mr. Moffat and 
his wife were some distance up the country, and there was 
no telling when they would return — there was every prob- 
ability that they would go on a visit to England. Living- 
stone's own hopes now turned to England as a refuge for 
his dear ones, but the depleted condition of his purse for- 
bade their going. In this dilemma the generous Oswell came 
to the rescue, proposing to defray the entire traveling ex- 
penses of Mrs. Livingstone and the children to England. 
At first Livingstone felt that he could not accept so great 
a favor, even at Oswell's hands; but the latter pressed the 
offer in such a way that Livingstone could no longer re- 
fuse. His acceptance was with tears of joy and gratitude 
and a pressure of the hand that Oswell could never forget. 

It was with a lighter heart than he had carried for many 
a day — although he should be separated from his dear ones 
for at least two years — that Livingstone took his family 
down to Cape Town and saw them safely on board a vessel 
bound for England. But when he embraced them for what 
might be the last time, his heart was heavy and sad enough. 
He promised them and himself that if his journey across 
the continent was successful he would join them in England 
at the expiration of two years. 

It was on the twenty-third day of April, 1852, that Liv- 
ingstone stood on the wharf at Cape Town ami watched tin 1 



142 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



good ship that was fast bearing from him his dearest earth- 
ly treasures. As she passed onward from his sight he 
bravely wiped away the unbidden tears and turned reso- 
lutely to the work before him. He was about to enter 
upon the longest and most dangerous journey he had ever 
undertaken. The route he had mapped out extended from 
Cape Town to the Portuguese settlement of St. Paul de Lu- 
anda on the west coast of Africa, and thence right across 
the continent to Quilimane on the Indian Ocean, and di- 
rectly at the mouth of the Zambesi Kiver. A glance at 
the map of Africa will convey to the reader some idea of 
the magnitude of this undertaking; but a mere compre- 
hension of distance can give little understanding of the in- 
trepidity, the unparalleled determination that planned the 
enterprise and carried it through. It seems scarcely possi- 
ble that one man could have done so much, and accom- 
plished even more than he had hoped; yet there is no cal- 
culating the possibilities of a single soul that burns, as did 
Livingstone's, with the love of God and men. He had in- 
timated to his friends that he might accomplish this jour- 
ney of fully five thousand miles in something like two years. 
Indeed, it had been a strong hope in his heart that he 
would rejoin his family in England in two years. Alas! 
it was nearly five years before he saw them again. 

Livingstone remained at Cape Town a few weeks, making 
preparations for his journey. While there he wrote the 
following letter to his wife, which gives full proof of the 
tender love that ruled his heart: 

Cape Town, May 5th, 1852. 
My Dearest Mary: How I miss you now, and the dear children! 
My heart yearns incessantly over yon. How many thoughts of the 
past crowd into my mind! I feel as if I would treat yon all much 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 143 



more tenderly and lovingly than ever. You have been a great 
blessing to me. You attended to my comfort in many, many ways. 
May God bless you for all your kindnesses. I see no face now to be 
compared to that sunburned one which has so ofien greeted me with 
its kind looks. . . . Let us do our duty to our Saviour, and we 
shall meet again. I wish that time were now. You may read the 
letters over again that I wrote at Mabotsa — the sweet time you know. 
As I told you before, I tell you again, they are true, true; there is 
not a bit of hypocrisy in them. I never show all my feelings; but 
I can say truly, my dearest, that I loved you when I married you, 
and the longer I lived -with you I loved you the better. . . . 
Let us do our duty to Christ, and he will bring us through the world 
with honor and usefulness. He is our refuse and high tower; let us 
trust in him at all times, and in all circumstances. Love him more 
and more, and diffuse his love among the children. Take them all 
around you, and kiss them for me. Tell them I have left them for 
the love of Jesus, and they must love him too, and avoid sin, for that 
displeases Jesus. I shall be delighted to hear of you all safe in En- 
gland. 

Your ever most affectionate, D. Livingstone. 

And here is one to his eldest daughter, who was at that 
time in her fifth year. How eloquently it speaks of the 
proud and loving father that he was; and how entirely it 
refutes the accusation that Livingstone was a somewhat cold 
and undemonstrative man in his family circle: 

Cape Town, May 18, 1852. 
My Dear Agnes: This is your own little letter. Mamma will 
read it to you, and you will hear her just as if I w T ere speaking to 
you, for the words that I write are those that she will read. I am 
still at Cape Town. You know that you left me there when you a! I 
went into the big ship and sailed away. Well, I shall leave Cape 
Town soon. Malatsi has gone for the oxen, and then I shall go 
away back to Sebituane's country, and see Seipone and Meriye, who 
gave you the beads and fed you with milk and honey. I shall not 
see you again for a long timc,and I am very sorry. I have no Nan- 



144 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



nie now. I have given you back to Jesus, your friend — your papa 
who is in heaven. He is above you, but he is always near you. 
When we ask things from him, that is praying to him: and if you 
do or say a naughty thing, ask him to pardon you, and bless you, and 
make you one of his children. Love Jesus much, for he loves you, 
and he came and died for you. O how good Jesus is! I love him, 
and shall love him as long as I live. You must love him too, and 
you must love your brothers and mamma, and never tease them nor 
be naughty, for Jesus does not like to see naughtiness. Good- by, 
my dear Nannie. D. Livingstone. 

Livingstone left Cape Town on the 8th of June, 1852, 
and arrived at Kuruman early in September. Here he 
learned that the Boers had again attacked his old friend 
Sechele, killing many of his people and carrying numbers 
of women and children into captivity. They had besides 
destroyed the remaining household goods, clothing, books, 
and such things as had been spared to Livingstone during 
the first raid on Kolobeng, and such as he had since been 
able to collect. As he humorously but pathetically said 
afterward, " they had saved him the trouble of 'making a 
will ' in case his death should have been near, since there 
wasn't so much as a pot remaining." 

The following letter, which Sechele had sent to Kuru- 
man for Livingstone, by the hand of Masabele — the one 
wife the chief had retained after his conversion to Chris- 
tianity — affectingly narrates the disaster that had over- 
taken the brave Bakwain and his unfortunate people: 

Friend of my heart's love, and of all the confidence of my heart, 
I am Sechele; I am undone by the Boers, who attacked me, though 
I had no guilt with them. They demanded that I should be in their 
kingdom, and I refused; they demanded that I should prevent the 
English and Griquas from passing [northward]. I replied, "These 
are my friends, and I can prevent no one" [of them]. They came 
on Saturday, and I besought them not to fight on Sunday, and they 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTON K. 1 45 



assented. They began on Monday morning at twilight, and fired 
with all their might, and burned the town with fire, and scattered 
us. They killed sixty of my people, and captured women and chil- 
dren and men. And the mother of Baleliring [a former wife of Se- 
cliele] they also took prisoner. They took all the cattle and all the 
goods of the Bakwains [Bechuanas], and the house of Livingstone 
they plundered, taking away all his goods. The number of wagons 
they had was eighty-five, and a cannon; and after they had stolen 
my own wagon and that of Macabe, then the number of their wag- 
ons [counting the cannon as one] was eighty-eight. All the goods 
of the hunters [certain English gentlemen hunting and exploring in 
the north] were burned in the town; and of the Boers were killed 
twenty-eight. 

Yes, my beloved friend, now my wife goes to see the children, and 
Kobus Hae will convey her to you. I am 

►Sec^ele, the son of Mochoasele. 

During the attack Masabele had hidden herself in a cleft 
of rock overlooking the village. She had with her her 
youngest child, a babe of only a few months. Terrified by 
the noises of the combat in the village below, the child be- 
gan to utter piercing cries. Some Boers were immediately 
seen to turn and approach the spot, as though attracted by 
the child's screams. Overcome by the thought that their 
hiding-place was about to be discovered, and scarcely know- 
ing what she did in this dire extremity. Masabele took off 
her bracelets and gave them to the child to play with. Fort- 
unately this quieted it almost instantly. Both their lives 
were doubtless saved by this device, as the Boers, unable to 
locate the place whence the sounds had issued, turned as if 
mystified and went away. 

These tidings from Kolobeng moved Livingstone greatly, 

especially on Sechele's account. He did not see that he 

could do any thing, however, in the urgency of the work 

he had undertaken, but advise Sechele to seek a safer and 

10 



146 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



better-fortified place, nearer the station of Ktiruman, and 
there establish himself, attracting to his new town as strong 
a following as possible. 

As to how Livingstone received the news of the loss of 
his own property, his letter to his wife will give the clearer 
insight, as well as furnish a more extended account of the 
attack on Kolobeng. We give only such parts as bear upon 

the matters in question : 

Kuruman, 20th Sept., 1852. 
My Dearest Mary : Along with this I send you a long letter; this 
J write in order to give you the latest news. The Boers gutted our 
house at Kolobeng. They brought four wagons down, and took away 
sofa, table, bed, all the crockery, your desk (I hope it had nothing 
in it — have you the letters?), smashed the wooden chairs, took away 
the iron ones, tore out the leaves of all the books and then scattered 
them in front of the house, smashed the bottles containing medi- 
cines, windows, oven-door, took away the smith-bellows, anvil, all 
the tools — in fact, every thing worth taking. They went up to Li- 
maue, went to church morning and afternoon, and heard Mebalwe 
preach. After the second service they told Sechele they had come 
to fight, because he allowed Englishmen to proceed to the north, 
though they had repeatedly ordered him not to do so. Sechele re- 
plied that he was a man of peace; that he could not molest English- 
men, because they had never done him any harm, and always treat- 
ed him well. In the morning they commenced firing on the town 
with swivels, and set fire to it. The heat forced some of the women 
to flee, the men to huddle together on the small hill in the middle 
of the town; the smoke prevented them from seeing the Boers, and 
the cannon killed many poor Bak wains, sixty in all. The Boers 
then came near to kill and destroy them all, but the Bakwains 
killed thirty-five and many horses. They fought the whole day, 
but the Boers could not dislodge them. They stopped firing in the 
evening, and then the Bakwains retired on account of having no 
water. The above sixty are not all men; women and children are 
among the slain. The Boers were six hundred, and they had seven 
hundred natives with them. All the corn is burned. Parties went 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 141 



out and burned Bangwaketse town, and swept off all the cattle. 
Sebubi's cattle are all gone. All the Bakhatla cattle gone. Nei- 
ther Bangwaketse nor Bakhatla fired a shot. All the corn burned 
of the whole three tribes. Every thing edible is taken from them. 
How Avill they live? The Boers told Sechele that the Queen had 
given off the land to them, and henceforth they were the masters, 
and had abolished chieftainship altogether. ... I wait here a 
little in order to get information when the path is clear. Kind Prov- 
idence detained me from falling into the very thick of it. God will 
preserve me still. He has work for me, or he would have allowed me 
to go on just when the Boers were there.* . . . We shall remove 
more easily now that we are lightened of our furniture. They have 
taken away our sofa. I never had a good rest on it. We had only 
got it ready when we left.f Well, they can't have taken away all 
the stones. We shall have a seat in spite of them, and that too with 
a merry heart, that which doeth good like a medicine. 

What brave and cheerful words these! and how noble 
the man who uttered them! " Well, they can't have taken 
away all the stones. We shall have a seai in spite of them. ,, 
Sunny indeed must have been the heart that could thus 
meet disaster! His whole life was an eloquent illustration 
of the beautiful truth that 

To the sunny soul that is full of hope, 
And whose beautiful trust ne'er faileth, 

The grass l is green and the flowers grow bright, 
Though the wintry storm prevaileth. 

With the sad news of the attack upon Kolobeng had also 

* Livingstone here alludes to the breaking of his wagon-wheels 
when he was about half the distance between Cape Town and Ku- 
ruman, which accident had detained him on the road a week or ten 
days, and kept him from reaching Kolobeng at the time first planned. 
Had he reached it at that time he would have been there when the 
Boers made their raid, and his life might have paid the forfeit. 

t It is presumed from these words that the sofa in question was a 
horns-manufactured one. 



148 l:fe of david Livingstone. 



come the intelligence that the Boers had renewed their 
vows of vengeance against Livingstone, and declared that 
he should never again cross their country alive. These 
threats did not trouble Livingstone, but they had a serious 
effect upon the men of his expedition. Every one of them 
deserted, and there was much delay and difficulty in pro- 
curing others; for, in spite of the dire threats by the Boers, 
Livingstone had determined to push on. Through the 
friendly aid of one George Fleming, a colored trader who 
was on his way to establish business relations with the Ma- 
kololo tribes, the necessary force of men at length joined 
the expedition. But unfortunately, as Livingstone tells us, 
" they were the worst possible specimens of those who im- 
bibe the vices without the virtues of the Europeans." From 
this description, and form what afterward occurred, we glean 
that they were very trifling fellows — more of a drawback 
than a help. Still, Livingstone was determined to proceed, 
and he felt that even these natives were better than none. 

When the travelers reached a point about forty miles 
north of Kuril man they came upon Sechele, with a small 
body of attendants — bound for England, he declared, to lay 
before the Queen a complaint as to his treatment by the 
Boers, and to ask that his wrongs be righted. So firm was 
his belief in the justice-loving nature of the English people 
that he did not for a moment doubt that their Queen would 
at once interest herself in his behalf. He knew that the 
Queen lived somewhere in England ; but as to the locality 
of England itself he was wholly ignorant. Yet, it could 
not be very far, he thought, since so many of the English 
people were constantly coming over to his country. If 
they could walk it, he was sure that he could walk it too. 
Anyhow, he was going to make the attempt. 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 149 



In vain Livingstone tried to reason with Sechele, and to 
persuade him to go back, telling him of the many impedi- 
ments that lay in his way, especially of the great ocean that 
was to be crossed. But all this had no effect upon Sechele; 
his mind was too firmly made up to be changed even by 
Livingstone, in whom he had more confidence than in any 
living person. He argued that " if the great white- winged 
things " — the ships, as he had heard them called by the 
natives w 7 ho had wandered down to the Cape and back 
— " could take others across, it was very certain they could 
take him too, since he was no larger and no heavier than 
the average man!" Finding it useless to persuade him 
further, Livingstone, with many misgivings, saw the deter- 
mined chief wend his way toward the Cape. 

The sturdy Sechele held doggedly to his course and to 
his intentions until the Cape was reached. Here several 
English officers, who were both amused at his determina- 
tion to seek the Queen and filled with genuine indignation 
against the Boers on account of their dastardly behavior, 
took quite an interest in him and kept him at their quar- 
ters. They gave him clothes and money, and it is believed 
finally dissuaded him from his purposed visit to the Queen, 
promising themselves to right his wrongs in time by com- 
pletely exterminating the Boers. Some months later Se- 
chele again appeared among his people apparently content 
with his journey, although it had ended at the Cape. 

That Sechele had profited greatly by his visit, though in 
quite a different manner from what he had expected, was 
shown by his putting into operation many useful ideas and 
hints he had obtained while at Cape Town, and all of which 
proved that he had been a close observer of the modes of 
civilized life. One of these was the sending of offenders 



150 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



to labor on public roads, which he found to work like a 
charm. 

Acting upon Livingstone's advice, Sechele now looked 
about him for a suitable point whereon to establish his new 
village, which he at the same time determined to make the 
show village of the country. A favorable situation was 
soon found some miles nearer the mission station of Kuru- 
m an. So well did Sechele improve upon the hints and 
ideas caught at the Cape that his town soon became pros- 
perous, and, as Livingstone had hoped, he was not long in 
attracting to himself a numerous following. 

It will interest our readers to learn that Sechele yet sur- 
vives, with his good wife Masabele, and is still nobly en- 
deavoring to live up to his Christian profession. His pres- 
ent village is some forty or fifty miles from the old station 
of Kolobeng, and is surrounded by many modern improve- 
ments seldom met with in the heart of so savage a region, 
and among natives. But when Sechele himself appears, 
the mystery is all explained. He still preserves a mission 
station among his people, which is at present upheld by a 
Hanoverian society. His regard and reverence for the 
name of Livingstone are unbounded. Most eagerly does he 
listen to and read all he can glean that relates to the great 
missionary. At the news of his death he was so deeply 
affected that he refused to take any food for many days. 

It is a wonder to many, especially to the missionaries who 
labor among his people, how Sechele gained so much knowl- 
edge of the Bible. He is also a preacher of great earnest- 
ness and power, and regularly takes part with the mission- 
aries in exhorting his people. 



CHAPTER XI. 



THE DEPARTURE FROM KURUMAN— HEAVY RAINS — THE FLOODED 
DISTRICTS — TERRIBLE SUFFERINGS OF THE PARTY — LIVING- 
STONE'S COURAGE AND TRUST — ARRIVAL AT LINYANTI — THE 
YOUNG CHIEF SEKELETU — INCIDENTS OF THE SOJOURN AT 
LINYANTI — THE MISSION - WORK AMONG THE MAKOLOLO — 
SEKELETU'S DANGEROUS RIVAL. 



IT was in December, 1852, that Livingstone, in company 
with George Heming, the colored trader, and the men 
they had hired as attendants, started from Kuruman on the 
trip of thousands of miles to St. Paul de Loanda. While 
not deterred from going by the threats of the Boers, he 
thought it " the better part of valor " to give them as wide 
a berth as possible. He therefore proceeded toward the 
country of Sebituane by a route entirely different from any 
he had before taken. His first principal stopping-place was 
to be Linyanti, the capital of the Makololo. Here he de- 
signed remaining until he could make the further arrange- 
ments necessary to the journey. 

This time Livingstone's party did not cross the Kalahari, 
but only went along its edge. They found traveling much 
less laborious and torturing than it had been heretofore; 
for a heavy rain had recently fallen, and there w r as plenty 
of water for both men and cattle, as well as grass and' 
water-melons in abundance for the oxen. At one point on 
his route Livingstone met with an English traveler, a Mr. 
Macabe, who told him that, having lost his way and the 
supply of forage giving out, his oxen had subsisted upon 

(151) 



152 LIFE OF DAVIT) LIVINGSTONE. 



the melons alone for twenty-one days. He had undertaken 
to cross the desert at its widest part, and had it not been a 
wet season he would have perished. As it was, he had a 
most eventful experience. 

Though the heavy fall of rain removed all dauger of suf- 
fering from thirst, it seriously impeded Livingstone's prog- 
ress. Deep and dangerous pools appeared along the line 
of march, and on drawing near Sebituane's domains Liv- 
ingstone found that in many places the whole face of the 
country was flooded, At one point the wagons had to be 
abandoned, and it then seemed inevitable that the remain- 
der of the journey must be made on foot. It was a fright- 
ful undertaking. The travelers were often wet all day, and 
for nearly one-half of that time they had to wade through 
water waist deep. Sometimes they had to swim for their 
lives. Again, the marshes over which they passed, besides 
being covered with water, were filled with thorns and reeds 
that offered great resistance to their advance. The thorns 
tore their clothing, the sharp edges of the reeds cut into 
their flesh like the keen blades of knives, but still they 
pushed bravely on. To add to the distress, most of the 
men had deserted, and the three who had been left were 
constantly quarreling among themselves, or stealing the 
scant supplies that remained. After contending for nearly 
a week with these swollen rivers, piercing reeds, and tort- 
uring briers, two of the three men died from the exposure. 
There were now only Livingstone, Heming, and one of the 
attendants. 

A great danger into which they were always running while 
pushing their way through the overflowed regions was the 
numerous crocodiles and hippopotami. Finally, on reach- 
ing a comparatively dry spot, our travelers constructed a 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 153 



raft, on which they got over the remaining flooded parts of 
the country; but on getting into the forests beyond, new- 
trials were encountered. The heat was intense, the buzzing 
insects stung them, the dense vines tore their faces or tripped 
their legs, the thorns cut into their already lacerated flesh. 
In many places they had to go down on their all-fours and 
crawl, generally emerging with raw 7 and bleeding knees. 
Livingstone somewhat alleviated his own sufferings by tear- 
ing his handkerchief in half and binding a portion about 
each knee. Once, however, even his brave heart failed, 
and, thinking the hour of death had come, he uttered the 
first despairing complaint that had ever passed his lips: " O 
God, have I indeed seen the last of my wife and children? 
Is this to be the breaking up of all my connections with 
earth, the leaving of this fair and beautiful world, knowing 
as yet so little of it?" Then began a communing with 
himself as to the nature of the hereafter. What was it to 
be? Where did it lie? "My soul, whither wilt thou em- 
igrate the first night after leaving this body? Will an an- 
gel soothe thy flutterings? for sadly fluttered wilt thou be 
on entering upon eternity. O if Jesus doth but speak one 
word of peace, how 7 quickly will it establish in thy breast 
an everlasting calm! Death is indeed a glorious event to 
one going to Jesus. But whither does the soul wing its 
flight? What does it see first? There is surely something 
sublime in passing into the second stage of our immortal 
lives if washed from our sins. But O to be consigned to 
ponder over ail our sins with memories excited, every scene 
of our lives held up as in a mirror before our facts, and we 
lookingatthem and waitingfor the day of judgment !" Then 
came stronger and more helpful thoughts — a return oi' that 
trust which had been with him and upheld him in hours oi' 



154 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



trial and danger. From his lips came words of humble and 
beseeching prayer — vows of reconsecration to the service of 
the Master, and entreaty that for the sake of the work that 
yet lay before him the servant might be spared, all unwor- 
thy as he was: "O Jesus, fill me with thy love now! and I 
beseech thee accept me and use me a little further for thy 
glory. I have done nothing for thee yet, and O how I 
would like to do something! O do, do, I beseech thee, ac- 
cept me and my service, and take to thyself all the glory! 
O succor now, I entreat thee, for sake of the work yet to 
be done, thy servant, and give him to see how best to pro- 
mote the glory of thy kingdom ! " 

Ah! surely this impassioned prayer was heard — a new 
charm set about the life upon the preservation of which de- 
pended so many precious results — since on the third day of 
May Livingstone, with his small remnant of bleeding and 
famished followers, reached the tow T n of Linyanti. Their 
condition excited the compassion of the kind-hearted Ma- 
kololo, and they were immediately given the best of every 
thing in the place, with kind and sympathetic attendants to 
alleviate their bodily sufferings as much as possible. 

Livingstone found that a change had taken place in the 
government of the Makololo. Being distressed by the signs 
of dissatisfaction on every side, and having really no desire 
for the position into which she had been thrust, Mamochi- 
sane had prevailed upon her younger brother, Sekeletu, to 
become chief of the tribes. While he lay in the hut recov- 
ering from the afflictive experiences of his journey to Lin- 
yanti, Livingstone was much exercised as to the reception 
Sekeletu would give him. Any fears that he may have en- 
tertained were put to rest on his first meeting with the chief. 
Sekeletu was very young, only about eighteen years old, 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTON!:. 155 



and it was difficult to surmise what lie would be when he 
grew older; yet it was plain to see that he was simple and 
kind-hearted, with the promise of many of his father's no 
ble qualities, though with nothing like his intelligence. 

When Sekeletu learned the object of Livingstone's pro- 
posed journey to the coast, he declared his intention to pro- 
vide him with all the necessary equipments and to give him 
an escort of Makololo men. Livingstone thanked God for 
putting such generous impulses into the young chief's heart. 
Had it been otherwise, Livingstone would not have known 
whither to turn for aid. The many disasters through which 
he had just passed — the loss of his wagon, oxen, and the va- 
rious supplies obtained at Kuruman — had lei't him without 
means of getting on in his hazardous journey. Sekeletu 's 
generous conduct was therefore like the bright rays of the 
sun breaking through dark clouds. But if Sekeletu had 
chosen an opposite course, Livingstone would have pushed 
onward, even if he had been compelled to go crawling on 
his hands and knees. Such was the indomitable courage 
and heroic determination of this man, who had surely been 
fashioned in Heaven's most kingly mold. 

Sekeletu's proposition was that Livingstone and his com- 
panions should make the greater part of the journey in ca- 
noes by way of the Zambesi and its tributaries. These ca- 
noes were to be furnished by the chief, while men, also fur- 
nished by him, were to go along the banks, leading oxen — 
the oxen to be ridden at stages of the journey where the 
navigation of the streams proved impracticable, and to serve 
as means of carriage when the rivers had to be left alto- 
gether. Sekeletu also informed Livingstone that it was his 
intention to accompany him on many miles oi^ his journey, 
especially through the greater part of his own territory, in 



15.6 LIIE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



order to gain in behalf of the expedition the friendliest in- 
terest of his people. 

Livingstone's independent spirit would not permit him to 
receive so many benefits from Sekeletu without making 
some return. He therefore examined his scanty store for 
something of real value — not a gaudy trifle that would prove 
of no service whatever. He bestowed upon the chief some 
powder, wire, flints, percussion-caps, an umbrella, a hat, and 
three goats and some fowls — the latter purchased from a 
company of strolling peddlers. The chief was delighted, 
but he had neither expected nor desired any reward. 

While waiting for the required traveling preparations 
and for his restoration to health and strength, Livingstone 
engaged in missionary w r ork among the Makololo. . He 
found them a tribe of more than average intelligence — ■ 
quick in their perceptions, and very easily impressed; but 
he could at first see little good resulting from his efforts. 
In the end, however, he began to feel encouraged ; and so 
promising were the evidences given that his old desire to 
plant a permanent mission station in the Makololo country 
returned in full force. It caused him to decide at once that 
should his journey to the coast prove successful he would no 
longer delay the matter. But the country of the Makololo 
was at certain seasons very unhealthy, especially that portion 
around Linyanti. If Livingstone established the station, 
it would therefore have to be at some other point. When 
the subject was broached to Sekeletu, he expressed his will- 
ingness to remove to a healthier locality. In fact, he was 
ready to go anywhere and to do any thing if Livingstone 
would reside among his people. He had grown so much 
attached to Livingstone that he could not bear the thought 
of separation from him, even for a year or so. He declared 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 157 



that in Livingstone he had found "a new father; " and his 
devotion to the noble missionary was touching to see. He 
would remain near Livingstone as much as was possible, 
gazing into his face and hanging upon his words as if fear- 
ful that he would miss some look or expression meant espe- 
cially for him. He never failed to hear Livingstone's ser- 
mons, and the missionary was hopeful that Sekeletu would 
soon be brought to a knowledge of the Saviour. 

Livingstone had no trouble to get the Makololo to hear 
him read and explain the Scriptures. Indeed, they came in 
such crowds that sometimes they could not all get within 
sound of his voice. He generally preached in their public 
meeting-place, called a kotla — a great open-sided hut that 
stood under the trees near the center of the village. 

Livingstone was much distressed, and yet often amused 
at the behavior of some of the women. They usually came 
in groups and sat on mats spread upon the floor. Occasion- 
ally a woman, in making a restless movement, or in get- 
ting up to go out, would plant her foot or her elbow upon 
the dress of another. Instantly the offender would be giv- 
en a shove, which, if she chanced to be upon her feet, sent 
her sprawling upon other women. These would pummel 
the poor unfortunate, and roll her about in a very rough 
manner, until some of her relatives came to protect her. 
Then would ensue a most deafening uproar. All this time 
Livingstone would strive to make himself heard, with what 
success can be readily imagined. 

This skirmishing among the women was only one of the 
many annoyances to which they subjected Livingstone when 
he began to preach at Linyanti. They would laugh at the 
simplest thing that happened. If a child cried, or a sleepy 
old man gaped, or a sleepier old woman nodded, an out- 



158 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



burst of merriment would be heard from one end of the 
kotla to the other. Sekeletu finally took this matter of in- 
decorum in hand, and before a great while good order was 
maintained throughout the kotla. 

Learning from Livingstone that one of the first require- 
ments of civilized life was that women should go thorough- 
ly clothed, Sekeletu gave orders that every woman of his 
household should make for herself full clothing out of such 
material as was at hand. This they all did readily, except 
the chief's favorite wife, a very tall and very determined 
young woman. Sekeletu was greatly provoked to see her 
come into the kotla one day with less clothing than she had 
formerly worn. Going up to her quietly, he remonstrated 
against her appearance, and tried to induce her to return to 
her hut for more clothing. She was very willful, or else 
maliciously inclined to see how far she could carry things 
with the chief; for she paid no heed whatever to Sekeletu's 
gentlemanly remonstrances. This behavior was more than 
he could stand, for, though generally mild and kindly dis- 
posed, he was very quick and determined when thoroughly 
aroused. Getting out of patience at last, he gave the wom- 
an a ringing box upon the ear, and took her by the hand to 
drag her toward the tent. This caused loud giggling on all 
sides, which the woman resented with flashing eyes and an 
expression that boded no good to the women who were tri- 
umphing over her. 

Livingstone found the Makololo women in general very 
harmless, with quick sympathies for real suffering and many 
generous impulses. No one could have nursed him more 
tenderly than they did through the sufferings caused by the 
exposures of his journey to Linyanti. 

Among the few effects left to Livingstone was a small 




A BEVY OF LINYANTI BELLES. 



(159) 



1G0 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



looking-glass, which he kept hanging from the side of his 
hut. It was at first au object of great terror to both the 
men and women, as they believed it to be through Living- 
stone's witchcraft that their faces could be made to appear 
in the little shining square of glass; but gradually they grew 
more assured, until they came to regard it with much fasci- 
nation, especially the women. They would make daily trips 
to the mirror, first asking Livingstone's permission, however. 
When they came, seeing him busily engaged in reading, they 
did not think that he paid any attention to them; yet he 
was so greatly amused at some of their expressions and their 
manner of acting that he could hardly keep from laughing 
outright. 

"My! my! is that me?" one of them would say in a dis- 
consolate voice as she beheld her reflection in the mirror. 
"Well, I never would have believed it! I really thought 
that I was better-looking than that I What a big mouth I 
have, to be sure! while in my eyes there is really a squint! 
As to my ears — well, they are indeed, as I have been told, 
nearly as large as pumpkin-leaves. And my chin, how 
short it is! And see, O dear! O dear! my head does shoot 
up in the middle as that horrid woman said it did! " 

" I would have been pretty, yes, really pretty," another 
one would sigh forth regretfully, "if it hadn't been for my 
high cheek-bones. What a pity that I cannot pound them 
down!" 

One morning a man en me to look in the glass. Believ- 
ing the Doctor asleep, he thus broke forth: "People have 
told me that I was very ugly, but I wouldn't believe them. 
Who ever does want to believe that they are ugly? or 
worse yet, to be told of it? But now, alas! alas! I know 
that I am very ugly indeed; for now that I have seen mv- 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 161 



sell', I can no longer persuade myself that I am even good- 
looking." 

Livingstone remained at Linyanti much longer than lie 
bad anticipated. He did not think it safe to venture upon 
that far more arduous portion of his journey to the sea un- 
til he had thoroughly regained strength and buoyancy. In 
the meantime be employed himself, as we have seen, both 
in teaching and preaching among the Makololo, He could 
not bear to be idle even for a time, doubtless believing with 
Dr. Adam Clarke that " the great secret of real happiness 
consists in never allowing one's energies to stagnate." 

At first the Makololo seemed unwilling to be taught any 
thing from books — -even the alphabet, or how to spell. They 
expressed a fear that they should be bewitched by the 
strange-looking volumes. Whenever Livingstone opened 
one of them all who saw it would stand some distance away, 
in an attitude plainly suggesting that they were ready to 
run. This amused Livingstone, and yet he felt sorry for 
the poor superstitious creatures, and tried to lessen their 
fears. It was decided that two of the oldest medicine-men 
should first become Livingstone's pupils, in order, by the 
exercise of certain "spells," to take away any evil influ- 
ences that might dwell in the books. The medicine-men 
themselves were somewhat afraid, but two were found who 
were willing to go, after they had been allowed to prepare 
their "spells" and "charms," and to anoint their bodies 
with something that looked like a compound of rancid but- 
ter, tar, and red paint. When the experiment had been 
made, and the two medicine-men came out safe and sound, 
there was great rejoicing throughout the village for several 
days. A dance of congratulation was tendered them, and 
a mighty feast given in honor of both pupils and teacher. 
11 



162 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



After this the people began to go in slowly, one at a time, 
to be taught from the books, but not until they had ob- 
tained some " charm " from the medicine-men. As long as 
Livingstone kept the book to himself — especially the Bible 
— and did not ask them to take hold of it, they seemed to 
have no fear. Thus it was that they came to hear him 
preach, and he entered into the work with all his soul aud 
strength, for he was a faithful missionary. He had labored 
thirteen years among these dusky children of the Dark Con- 
tinent, and he looked upon it as the grandest work in which 
a man could engage. Had not the Prince of Peace, the 
King of all the earth, himself engaged in it? Often did 
Livingstone say : " God had an only Son, and he was a mis- 
sionary and a physician. A poor imitator of him I am, or 
wish to be. In this service I hope to live, in it I wish to 
die. May God accept my service, and use me for his glory. 
A great honor it is to be a fellow-worker with God." Again, 
speaking of his proposed march across the Continent, and 
of the many things it involved, he says: " It is a great vent- 
ure. Yet would I venture every thing for Christ. Pity I 
have so little to give." What a reproach his modesty and 
devotion are to some of us with our vain boastings and our 
barren gifts! 

The extracts below, taken from Livingstone's journal, and 
which were written during his sojourn at Linyanti, will 
give his own impressions of his mission-work among the 
Makololo: 

Banks of the Chobe, Sunday, May loth. — Preached twice to about 
sixty people. Very attentive. It is only divine power which can 
enlighten dark minds like these. The people seem to receive ideas 
on divine subjects slowly. They listen, but never suppose that the 
truths must become embodied in actual life. 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE, 163 

Sunday, June loth.— A good and very attentive audience, but im- 
mediately after the service I went to see a sick man, and when I re- 
turned toward the kotla I found that the chief had retired into a hut 
to drink beer, as the custom is; about forty men were standing sing- 
ing to him, or, in other words, begging beer by that means. A min- 
ister who had not seen so much pioneer service as I have done would 
have been shocked to see so little effect produced by an earnest dis- 
course concerning the future judgment; but time must be given to 
allow the truth to sink into a dark mind, and produce its effect.- The 
earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord — 
that is enough. We can afford to work in faith, for Omnipotence 
is pledged to fulfill the promise. The great mountains become a 
plain before the Almighty arm. The poor Bushman, the most de- 
graded of all Adam's family, shall see his glory, and the dwellers in 
the wilderness all bow before him. The obstacles to the coming of 
the kingdom are mighty, but come it will for all that. 

Then let us pray that come it may, 

As come it will for a' that; 
That man to man, the world o'er, 

Shall brothers be for a' that, 

Of his later labors among the Makololo, Livingstone 
gives these additional pictures: 

When I stand up all the women and children draw near, and hav- 
ing ordered silence, I explain the plan of salvation, the goodness of 
God in sending his Son to die, the confirmation of his mission by 
miracles, the last judgment or future state, the evil of sin — God's 
commands respecting it, etc.; always choosing one subject only for 
an address, and taking care to make it short and plain, and applica- 
ble to them. This address is listened to with great attention by most 
of the audience. A short prayer concludes the service, all kneeling 
down and remaining so till told to rise. 

A quiet audience to-day.' The seed is being sown, the least of all 
seeds now, but it will grow a mighty tree. It is as it were a small 
stone cut out of a mountain, but it will fill the whole earth. Wo 
that believeth shall not make haste. Surely if God can bear with 
hardened, impenitent sinners for thirty, forty, or fifty years, waiting 



164 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



to be gracious, we may take it for granted that his is the best way. 
He could destroy his enemies, but he wants to be gracious. To be- 
come irritated with their stubbornness and hardness of heart is un- 
godlike. 

While waiting at Linyanti, Livingstone proposed to Se- 
keletu that they should go in quest of a suitable spot for the 
intended mission station. Sekeletu at first hesitated to ac- 
company Livingstone, because the route mapped out lay di- 
rectly through the section where lived his half-brother, 
Mpepc, who had of late become his most dreaded enemy. 
When Mamochisane resigned her claim to Sekeletu it 
greatly angered Mpepe, who thought he had a better right 
to the chieftainship. Vowing vengeance, he retired to the 
territory of some of the worst factions of the tribe, where he 
was now trying to stir up a revolt. He not only threatened 
Sekeletu's life, but he made two secret attempts against it, 
both of which happily failed. To add further to Sekeletu's 
danger, Mpepe was upheld by all the half-caste Portuguese 
tribes along the river, and by the Portuguese traders. The 
reason of this was that Mpepe favored the slave-trade, and 
had declared that should he become chief the traders might 
have it all their own way. Sekeletu, on the other hand, 
was strongly opposed to the wicked and inhuman practice 
— more so than ever since he had heard Livingstone preach 
so earnestly against it. 

Taking into consideration this state of affairs, it is not 
surprising that Sekeletu felt some trepidation in regard to 
going with Livingstone. Had open warfare impended, he 
would have cared little for it, since the better classes of the 
Makololo — and these formed a mighty following — were on 
the young chief's side. But he well knew how cruel and 
treacherous Mpepe could be, and feared some blow r in the 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 165 



dark. Yet Sekeletu was a brave young chief, though ei- 
feminate in appearance, and it did not take him long to de- 
cide that he would go, despite the peril. When Livingstone 
learned the true state of affairs, he felt some solicitude for 
the young chief, but determined not to let Sekeletu get out 
of his sight. How fortunate it was that he should have so 
decided, the sequel will show. 



CHAPTER XII. 



THE START IN SEARCH OF A HEALTHY LOCALITY — THE DEMON- 
STRATIVE RECEPTION BY THE PEOPLE — LIVINGSTONE FRUS- 
TRATES MPEPE'S WICKED DESIGN — MPEPE'S DEATH — UP THE 
ZAMBESI — A PATHETIC INCIDENT — THE VALLEY OF THE BA- 
ROTSE — HEATHENISM IN ITS MOST REVOLTING ASPECT — THE 
BAROTSE DANCE OF WELCOME — LIVINGSTONE VISITS KATONGA 
— PUSHES FARTHER UP THE RIVER — CONTINUED DISCOURAGE- 
MENT — THE RETURN TO LINYANTI. 



ON leaving Linyanti to seek a healthy location for the 
proposed mission station, Livingstone was accompa- 
nied by Sekeletu and one hundred and sixty of his men. 
The chief himself was cJosely attended by his own mopato, 
or body-guard, which consisted of a picked company of 
twenty-five or thirty young men of his own age. Living- 
stone thus describes the procession as it wound away from 
the village toward the river : " It was pleasant to look back 
on the long-extended line of our attendants, as it twisted 
and bent according to the curves of the foot-path, or in and 
out behind the mounds, the ostrich feathers of the men wav- 
ing in the wind. Some had the white ends of ox-tails on 
their heads, hussar fashion, and others great bunches of 
black ostrich feathers, or caps made of lions' manes. Some 
wore red tunics, or various colored prints which the chief 
had bought from Fleming [Dr. Livingstone's fellow-trav- 
eler]; the common men carried burdens; the gentlemen 
walked with a small club of rhinoceros horn in their hands, 
and had servants to carry their shields; while the Machaka, 
(166) 






LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 167 



battle-ax men, carried their own, and were liable at any 
time to be sent a hundred miles on an errand, and expected 
to run all the way." 

The intention of the party was to march overland along 
the banks of the Chobe River until they struck the Zambesi 
at the town of Sesheke, whither Sekeletu had sent orders 
that thirty-five canoes of the first make should await them. 
On the journey through the country to Sesheke they had to 
pass through several villages. At each of these the people 
ran out in great crowds, and on Sekeletu's approach, sur- 
rounded by his fine-looking body-guard, they at once pros- 
trated themselves before him, touching their foreheads to the 
ground in token of their devotion. An ox was slain and 
roasted, while great calabashes of beer were handed around. 

When they had gone about sixty miles on their journey, 
they came upon Mpepe and some of his followers. Hear- 
ing of Sekeletu's proposed visit, Mpepe had formed a plot 
against his life. This was, to engage him in a pretended 
friendly council, then to make a sudden thrust with his bat- 
tle-ax when Sekeletu least expected it, and cut off his head. 
The wicked Mpepe would have succeeded in this plot had 
it not been for Livingstone. Suspecting treachery, in spite 
of Mpepe's friendly pretensions, Livingstone kept his eyes 
keenly open, as he had determined he would do, and ward- 
ed off the blow intended for Sekeletu. Exasperated by this 
dastardly attempt upon the life of their well-loved chief, 
the body-guard of Sekeletu seized the treacherous Mpepe, 
and, carrying him to a grove outside the village, dispatched 
him with their spears. This* had the effect of entirely de- 
moralizing Mpepe's followers, who fled in dismay, fearing 
that they might share his fate. Mpepe's death put an end 
to all signs of rebellion. 



168 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



The travelers struck the Zambesi not at Sesheke, as had 
been intended, but at a small village some miles above. 
From this point Sekeletu detailed messengers to the head 
man of the village of Sesheke, asking him to send up the 
canoes. While awaiting the arrival of these boats the 
men engaged in hunting, in order to procure meat to dry 
for their use on the journey up the river. Although much 
against his desire, Livingstone took charge of the hunting 
party. He decided to undertake it rather than trust it to 
the Makololo. They were poor marksmen, and would only 
have wasted the powder had they gone alone, and powder 
was very precious with the party. 

The country surrounding the village was flat, diversified 
here and there by cup-shaped mounds crowned with clus- 
ters of trees. Vast herds of elands, zebras, antelopes, and 
other game were daily seen upon the plains; but as they 
were very shy, it was difficult to get near enough to kill 
them with spears — hence Livingstone's guns were of great 
service. One day the hunters, headed by Livingstone, shot 
a beautiful cow eland that was standing in the shade of a 
small tree not far from the river-bank. " It was evident," 
says Livingstone, " that she had lately had her calf killed 
by a lion, for there were five long, deep scratches on both 
sides of her hind quarters, as if she had run to the rescue of 
her calf, and the lion, leaving it, had attacked herself but 
was unable to pull her down. When lying on the ground 
the milk flowing from her large udder showed that she 
must have been seeking the shade from the distress its non- 
removal in the natural manner must have caused her." 
Tears came to Livingstone's eyes as he saw this innocent 
and beautiful creature stretched out in her death-struggles. 
The Makololo, too, seemed touched by the pathetic sight. 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 169 



One of them, Labeolo by name, said to Livingstone: " Do 
you think that great man, Mr. Jesus, of whom you have 
told us, and who is Lord of all the earth, as well as Master 
of the beasts, will like it when he knows how we have slain 
this beautiful creature of his who was doing us no harm?" 
Although the life of the lovely creature had only been taken 
to sustain their own, Livingstone felt the rebuke deeply. 
On the other hand, he felt rejoiced at this proof of the good 
effect his preaching had had upon the Makololo. They ev- 
idently had a very clear idea of " the great man, Mr. Jesus." 
who condemned every act of cruelty. 

The canoes having arrived, the party embarked and 
moved up the broad, beautiful current of the Zambesi. It 
was a delightful journey, and one that Livingstone enjoyed 
more than any he had yet taken. At many places the river 
was more than a mile wide; at others its surface was broken 
by small islands that arose fairy-like from out the glistening 
expanse of water, bearing aloft miniature forests of mango 
and palm. All along the hanks were stretches of tall date- 
palms, with their gracefully curved fronds swaying in the 
breeze. Every now and then from a cluster of these palms 
a lofty palmyra shot many feet above the others, its feather- 
like mass of foliage appearing ready to be detached and sent 
whirling away by the first ungentle wind that blew over it. 
There were also many luxuriant vines with brilliant ber- 
ries, and everywhere wild flowers in prodigal abundance. 

In many parts of the Zambesi shallows and rapids made 
navigation at the dry season extremely difficult, and in some 
places very dangerous. However, as copious rains had fallen 
previous to their embarkation, Livingstone's navy had no 
trouble in getting along until they came to the Falls of 
Gouva. Here the river narrowed to a width of seventy-five 



170 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



or eighty yards, and they had to disembark and carry the 
canoes and supplies about a mile overland. While makiug 
this detour they stopped part of a day at a small village a 
half-mile or more from the river. Livingstone heard of a 
man who, taking advantage of the elevated position of the 
Gouva Falls, had led the water through a rudely construct- 
ed canal into his garden for the purpose of irrigating it. 
This man, thought Livingstone, must have been very supe- 
rior to the rest of his race — doubtless had been much of a 
traveler, and had somewhere during his travels gained the 
idea of the canal. They were shown the garden, and could 
see many signs of the rude trench that led to the river. In 
the garden, although it had been neglected for many gener- 
ations, they dug up some succulent roots shaped like pota- 
toes. Indeed, the Makololo pronounced them potatoes at 
first sight. They were quite waxy, and exceedingly bitter 
to the taste. 

One of the most beautiful spots visited was the valley of 
the Barotse, in which lived a tribe of the same name. They 
were of the same government as the Makololo, and most cor- 
dially received Sekeletu and his party, joyfully hailing him 
as their chief. This valley, remarkably fertile and covered 
with vegetable growths in great variety, was about one hun- 
dred and twenty-five miles in length and from fifteen to 
thirty-five in width, with the Zambesi flowing almost direct- 
ly through the center. As the Zambesi, like* the Nile, had 
its overflows at certain seasons, the valley of the Barotse, 
being very low ground, was at such times thoroughly inun- 
dated. To avoid the destruction of their villages the Ba- 
rotse had built them on mounds beyond the reach of the ris- 
ing waters. The idea of raising these mounds, which were 
necessarily artificial all through, was said to have been con- 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 171 



veyed to the Barotse by a former renowned chieftain of 
theirs, whose son still survived. The name of this chief, as 
also that of his son, was Santuru ; and if report spoke truly, 
he must have been almost as good and wise as the great 
chief Sechele. Santuru had taught the Barotse, among 
other things, the art of planting these mounds thickly with 
trees, not only to strengthen them, but to afford shade from 
the fierce rays of the sun. As this valley was entirely free 
from the ravages of the deadly tsetse fly, the Barotse owned 
an abundance of cattle. When the heavy rains began — 
heralds of the approaching floods — the villagers would drive 
their cattle off to the high ground, where they were safely 
penned. As food was not plentiful here, they grew very 
lean and ill-conditioned; and it was amidst great rejoicing 
of the natives, as well as of the famished brutes themselves, 
that they were conducted back to their rich pasturage 
grounds on the subsidence of the floods. 

So very fertile was this valley of the Barotse that Liv- 
ingstone desired to experiment with it in raising wheat and 
other grains; yet he soon discovered that it was so rich the 
grain would run entirely to straw. Even the grass grew 
twelve to fifteen feet high, with stalks as thick as a man's 
thumb. 

While passing through the country of the Barotse, Liv- 
ingstone was daily shocked and pained by the numberless 
harrowing sights he was called upon to witness. He was 
not only greeted by some of the most revolting aspects of 
the slave-trade, but he also saw heathenism in its lowest ami 
most forbidding form. The utmost cruelty was shown by 
children to parents, and by parents to children. The old 
were made to do all the drudgery, while shocking murders 
were of daily occurrence. It was not uncommon to sir an 



172 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



old woman who could hardly stand beaten for something 
she had failed to do — something doubtless far beyond the 
poor old creature's strength to do. 

One day, as the party were journeying through a forest, 
a girl not more than fifteen years of age came staggering 
from behind a tree to meet them, and to beg for something 
to eat. She was a most pitiable-looking object, being en- 
tirely naked and emaciated to a mere skeleton. She had 
run away to escape the terrible yoke of slavery. Living- 
stone spoke kindly to her, and sought to detain her, so as 
to do something for her if possible; but she grew alarmed, 
thinking it was his intention to return her to her people, 
who had tried to sell her to the slave-traders. Springing 
away, she fled deeper into the woods in front of them. Two 
days later they came upon her body, more than half de- 
voured by a hyena, while that which remained was so hor- 
ribly mangled they could scarcely recognize it. 

At another time the travelers saw a large crowd of slaves 
bound to each other by a heavy chain that bent them down 
and cut into their flesh at every step taken. Livingstone 
turned away sick at heart. He was powerless to prevent 
such cruelties, but prevailed upon Sekeletu to remain in the 
Barotse country long enough for him to preach half a dozen 
times to these poor, ignorant, and sin-cursed people. He 
had little hope of good results in so short a time, and in the 
face of so much darkness, wickedness, and superstition; yet 
he prayed that a portion at least of the precious seed might 
take root and grow, if only with a feeble shoot. Although 
all w T as uphill work, all stony ground, where it seemed that 
the most vigorous seed could not struggle into life, he did 
not lose heart altogether ; his " wall of trust " was too firmly 
built to be battered even by the enemy's heaviest fire, and 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 173 



ho too courageous a soldier to long harbor thought of defeat. 
Because of this patient endurance, these mighty, steadfast 
endeavors, his life grew better, braver, nobler, day by day. 
Let us take the lesson of this example close to our hearts, 
and keep it there, remembering always that 

Highest aim and true endeavor, 

Earnest work with patient might; 
Hoping, trusting, singing ever; 

Battling bravely for the right; 
Loving God, all men forgiving, 

Helping weaker feet to stand — 
These will make a life worth living, 

Make it noble, make it grand. 

The Barotse seemed to care very little for what Living- 
stone had to tell them. They were noisy, cowardly, cruel, 
and ungrateful; yet they had. some redeeming traits, prom- 
inent among which was their hospitality. They received 
the Makololo and their young chief with much rejoicing 
and the slaughter of many oxen — this last being the high- 
est proof they could give of the sincerity of their welcome. 
They also endeavored by every means to show Livingstone 
how pleased they were to have him in their country. 

Livingstone would have liked to plant his mission station 
somewhere among the Barotse, because he felt that so great 
were their ignorance and darkness they needed the ei/light- 
enment of Christ's gospel more than any tribe lie had yet 
come upon. But alas! owing to the overflow of the river, 
the valley at certain seasons was extremely unhealthy, and 
once a year was visited by the dread scourge, fever. 

Livingstone staid among the Barotse as long as he could, 
preaching, praying, and teaching, and left at last trusting 
God for the result. 



174 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



The party made detours up the various tributaries of the 
Zambesi, stopping at the towns, all of which were under Se- 
keletu's government. At each town the travelers were re- 
ceived with enthusiastic demonstrations — the young chief 
especially. Huge bonfires were built, the most deafening 
noises were made on all kinds of rude instruments, while 
the people hallooed and sung at the top of their voices. 
But the greatest demonstration of all was the dance of wel- 
come, in which the whole village joined, the men shouting 
themselves hoarse and the women falling down from sheer 
exhaustion. On one of these occasions, as Livingstone stood 
near two young men who were dancing as though their lives 
depended upon it, he overheard the following conversation. 

" This is awfully hard work," said one, "and I can't really 
see the good of it. What is the use, now, of dancing one's 
self nearly stiff just to welcome the chief, when we might 
take some other way of showing how pleased we are that he 
has condescended at last to visit us?" 

" It is indeed very hard work," agreed the other, ' ; but 
then it isn't without its profit. There is, in truth, very great 
profit in it, as you will soon see. Why, just to think, man, 
of the cows the chief will order to be slaughtered, and how 
we will feast upon them! So, just remember this now, and 
kick your legs as high as you can, for the higher you kick 
the more chance there will be for you to attract the atten- 
tion of the chief himself; and then who knows but what he 
will be so gracious as to give you a whole ox all to yourself?" 

As this feast of freshly slaughtered meat seemed to be the 
one great object all the people had in view when they came 
forth to dance before Sekeletu and his attendants, the young 
chief, who well knew the long-established custom of his fa- 
ther, did not disappoint them. He had at hand every means 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 175 



of gratifying them. Years before his death Sebituane, with 
that forethought so characteristic of him, had established 
throughout his territory various cattle stations. These were 
kept well filled, and placed in charge of men who thoroughly 
understood their business. Thus Sekeletu found no trouble 
in gratifying the desires of his people in this direction, and 
at the conclusion of the dance the chief invariably gave the 
order for a feast of slaughtered oxen to be made ready. 

The dance alluded to is thus described by Livingstone: 
"It consists of the men standing, nearly naked, in a circle, 
w 7 ith clubs or small battle-axes in their hands, and each 
roaring at the loudest pitch of his voice, while they simul- 
taneously lift one leg, stamp heavily twice with it, then lift 
the other, and give one stamp with that; this is the only 
movement in common. The arms and head are thrown 
about also in every direction ; and all this time the roaring- 
is kept up with the utmost possible vigor. The continued 
stamping makes a cloud of dust around, and they leave a 
deep ring in the ground where they have stood. If the scene 
were witnessed in a lunatic asvlum-, it would be nothing 
out of the way, and quite appropriate, even, as a means of 
letting off the excessive excitement of the brain; but the 
gray-headed men joined in the performance with as much 
zest as others whose youth might be an excuse for making 
the perspiration stream off their bodies with the exertion. 
The women stood by clapping their hands; and occasionally 
one advances into the circle composed of a hundred nun, 
makes a few movements, and then retires. ,, Sometimes, 
again, the women joined in with as much spirit and ener- 
gy as the men, and often had to be borne away limp and 
nearly lifeless, having fallen through exhaustion. 

Another dance engaged in by this people was the tribal 




(176) 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 177 



war dance. This, however, was only indulged in on hostile 
occasions, or when the braves were going forth to battle. 
Then spears and clubs and a most unsightly and ungainly 
lot of head-gear were used, and all with frightful effect. 

Hearing that Katonga — a town of the Barotse some dis- 
tance above their capital, Naliele — was situated on high 
ground, Livingstone went in that direction with a part of 
the Makololo men. In the meantime Sekeletu, with his 
more immediate attendants, remained at Naliele to take 
part in a great feast that was to be given in his honor. 

Livingstone's object in going to Katonga was to find the 
long-sought point for the mission station. His hopes, how- 
ever, were again doomed to disappointment. Though the 
situation at Katonga was on exceedingly high ground, and 
the surrounding country was the most beautiful and fertile 
he had yet seen, it was almost, if not equally, as unhealthy 
as the valley of the Barotse. 

The view from the high ground of Katonga was one of the 
loveliest upon which Livingstone's eyes had ever rested. It 
commanded a stretch of country that lay in a beautiful 
prairie-like expanse for miles on every side. In the mini- 
ature valleys that nestled between the low, cup-shaped hills 
thousands of noble animals were grazing — cattle of various 
kinds — all belomnno; to the Barotse. Besides these were 
vast herds of leches, a kind of antelope, feeding in the ut- 
most security. Numberless arms of the river here glanc d 
off in different directions, adding yet greater beauty to the 
scene. Livingstone was loath to turn his back upon a coun- 
try so enchanting, but the intelligence gained that this Eden 
had its serpent in the shape of the annual visits of the deadly 
fever drove him away discouraged. 

As the current of the river at Katonga ran fully five 
12 



178 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



railes an hour, it suggested to Livingstone the increasing 
rise of the country above. He therefore determined to ex- 
tend his journey still farther up the stream. As Sekeletu 
had sent runners ahead to tell the people of Livingstone, 
he was everywhere received with the greatest delight. From 
the story the runners spread the natives believed he was a 
powerful chief who had displayed great condescension in 
visiting them. They hailed his approach with exclama- 
tions something like these: " Behold! the great chief." 
" Behold ! he of the mighty power and of the strong hand 
approacheth." "See! here comes the lord, the great lion. 
Let us make ready, O people, to receive him." Livingstone 
says of this expression, " the lord, the great lion," which in 
their language was rendered " tau-e-tona : " " It soon came 
to sound so much like ' saw-a-tone/ or the great sow, that it 
was all I could do to preserve my gravity whenever I heard 
it." 

Livingstone continued his explorations as far as the 
junction of the Leeba with the Zambesi. Not finding the 
healthy spot for which he looked, he gave up the quest for 
the time being, and started to rejoin Sekeletu. 

On their voyage down the river the Livingstone party un- 
expectedly came upon the chief at the small town of Ma- 
Sekeletu, which meant the mother of Sekeletu, and was so 
named because it was the home of the young chief's mother. 
Having remained here several days, and being most royally 
entertained by Sekeletu's mother, the party began their re- 
turn to Linyanti, which they reached after an absence of 
nine weeks. 



CHAPTER XIII. 



LIVINGSTONE AGAIN LABORS AMONG THE MAKOLOLO — HIS LETTER 
TO HIS CHILDREN — THE START FROM LINYANTI FOR THE COAST 

ARRIVAL AT SESHEKE — INCIDENTS THE JOURNEY UP THE 

ZAMBESI — GLIMPSES OF AFRICAN NATURAL HISTORY — MANEN- 
KO, THE AMAZON CHIEFTAIN EPS — TWO NATIVE BELLES — AP- 
PROACHING THE STRONGHOLD OF THE SLAVE TRAFFIC. 



OUR travelers reached Linyanti from their explora- 
tions in the river country in September, 1853. Liv- 
ingstone did not at once begin his preparations for the long 
journey to the coast, as it might be supposed he would have 
done, considering his great anxiety to be off. With all his 
ardor he had much discretion and a happy faculty of keeping 
cool and patient under the most tantalizing circumstances. 
He was still suffering from the effects of his former attack 
of fever, and considerably prostrated from the fatigues of 
his recent journey up the river. He therefore determined 
to stay in Linyanti until he had recovered his usual health 
and spirits. While thus waiting he engaged in teaching the 
Makololo. At this period he wrote the following tender 
and touching letter to his dearly loved little ones so far 

away : 

Sekeletu's Town, Linyanti, Oct. 2, 1853. 

My Dear Robert, Agnes, Thomas, and Oswell: Here is another lit- 
tle letter for you all. I should like to see you much more than 
write to you, and speak with my tongue rather than with my pen; 
but we are far from each other — very, very far. Here are Seipone 
and Meriye, and others who saw you as the first white children they 
ever looked at. Meriye came the other day and brought a round 

(179) 



180 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



basket for Nannie. She made it of the leaves of the palmyra. Oth- 
ers put me in mind of you all by calling me Rananee and Rarobert, 
and there is a little Thomas in the town; and when I think of you 
I remember, though I am far off, that Jesus, our good and gracious Je- 
sus, is ever near both you and me, and then I pray to him to bless you 
and make you good. He is ever near. Remember this, if you feel 
angry or naughty — Jesus is near you, and sees you, and he is good 
and kind. When he was among men those who heard him speak 
said, "Never man spake like this man;" and we now say, "Never 
did man love like him." You see little Zouga is carried on mamma's 
bosom. You are taken care of by Jesus with as much care as mam- 
ma takes of Zouga. He is always watching you and keeping you in 
safety. It is very bad to sin, to do any naughty things, or to speak 
angry or naughty words before him. 

My dear children, take him as your (nude, your Helper, your 
Friend and Saviour through life. Whatever you are troubled about, 
ask him to help you. Our God is good. . We thank him that we 
have such a Saviour and Friend as he is. Now you are little, but 
you will not always be so; hence you must learn to read and Avrite 
and work. All clever men can both read and w r rite, and Jesus needs 
clever men to do his work. Would you not like to work for him 
among men? Jesus is wishing to send his gospel to all nations, and 
he needs clever men to do this. Would you like to serve him? 
Well, you must learn now, and not get tired learning. After some 
time you will like learning better than playing, but you must play 
too, in order to make your bodies strong, that you may be able to 
serve Jesus. 

I am glad to learn that you go to the academy. I hope you are 
learning fast. Don't speak Scotch. It is not so pretty as English. 
Is the Tail learning to read with mamma? I hope you are all kind 
to mamma. I saw a poor woman in a chain with many others, up 
at the Barotse. She had a little child, and both she and the child 
were very thin. See how kind Jesus was to you! No one can put 
you in chains unless you become bad. If, however, you learn bad 
ways, beginning only by saying bad words, or by doing little bad 
things, Satan will have you in the chains of sin, and you will be 
hurried on in his bud ways till you are put in the dreadful place 



AFE OF DAVJD LIVINGSTONE. l<Si 



which God hath prepared for him and all who are like him. Pray 
to Jesus to deliver you from sin, give you new hearts, and make you 
his children. Kiss Zouga, mamma, and each other for me. 

Your ever affectionate father, D. Livingstone. 

About the middle of October Livingstone began to make 
ready for the long and tedious journey before him. Seke- 
letu gave him all the aid in his power; indeed, he seemed as 
anxious for the success of the undertaking as Livingstone 
himself. The latter had made clear to the chief the impor- 
tance of the expedition and the advantage that the opening 
up of such a highway of traffic would prove to his people. 
But Ave must do Sekeletu the justice to say that he was act- 
uated as much by love and admiration for Livingstone as 
by a desire of benefit from the enterprise. 

The most of Sekeletu's people warmly favored the expe- 
dition, and he had no trouble in getting men to accompany 
Livingstone. Many more presented themselves than it was 
necessary to take. Still, despite these promising signs, there 
were some croakers, principally old men and women, who 
believed that these modern ideas and innovations would 
surely bring death and destruction wherever meddled with. 
At a picho, or conference^ held by the head men of the 
tribe, preparatory to Livingstone's departure, one of these 
old croakers piped out, "Where is this man about to take 
these of thy people, O chief?" pointing to the men who had 
been detailed to go with Livingstone. " Dost thou know? 
Doth any one know? Can he tell himself? Blood ! blood ! 
I smell blood. It is on his garments and theirs! Beware! 
beware ! beware, O chief! " How long he would have talked 
in this strain it was not given him to show, for at this point 
the chief indignantly commanded him to leave the assem- 
bly, and all present greeted him with grunts of dissatisfac- 
tion and hisses and groans of disdain. His words had no 



182 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



other effect upon any one, except a few old croakers like 
himself. 

It had been decided that twenty-seven picked men should 
accompany Livingstone, all of them young and hardy. 
About one-half of them were Barotse men. As these were 
acquainted with many of the tribes to the north, it was sug- 
gested by Sekeletu to Livingstone that they would be of far 
greater value to him on this stage of his journey than the 
Makololo, though the Makololo were more desirable in 
every other respect. Livingstone i>referred t ] iat 110ne k u t 
Makololo men should go with him ; but, save in one or two 
instances, the Barotse proved very clever and trusty, quite 
unlike the majority of their race. 

The only question propounded to Livingstone by the Ma- 
kololo that showed any thing like a misgiving in regard to 
the expedition was: "In the event of your death, will not 
the white people blame us for having allowed you to go 
away into an unhealthy and an unknown country of ene- 
mies?" Livingstone hastened to reassure them by declar- 
ing that there were none of his friends who would think of 
blaming them for such a thing; but to make the Makololo 
altogether easy on this point, he would leave with their chief 
a book, which in case he was lost would explain to his friends 
all about the journey. Livingstone instructed Sekeletu to 
send this book to Mr. Moffat if he should not return by a 
given time. The book alluded to was a volume of journals, 
and it was most unfortunate that it should have been lost, as 
afterward happened. Sekeletu kept it as Livingstone had 
requested. As the specified time passed away, and much 
more, and there was no sign of the brave missionary, not a 
word from him, the young chief in despair delivered the 
book to a trader, requesting him to carry it direct to Mr. 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 183 



Moffat. The book never reached its destination, nor could 
any trace of the trader be found. Livingstone always deeply 
regretted the loss of these journals, as in addition to accounts 
of his travels, missionary labors, and explorations, they con- 
tained many valuable descriptions of the habits of numer- 
ous wild animals, birds, etc. 

Before finally entering upon this perilous journey Living- 
stone naturally felt apprehensive, but not once did he shrink 
from the undertaking. To one of his nature there was no 
such thing as turning back when once his face had been 
firmly set in any direction. He wrote to his brother-in-law, 
Robert Moffat, at this time: " I shall open up a path into 
the interior, if I perish in the attempt." Grand, stirring 
words these — words that plainly show the mighty determi- 
nation that moved him, the unconquerable spirit that car- 
ried him forward. Again he asks with telling force, " Can 
the love of Christ not carry the missionary where the slave- 
trade carries the trader? " Ah! truly it could in his case, 
and it did. His last prayer on leaving was: " May God in 
his mercy permit me to do something for the cause of Christ 
in these dark places of the earth ! But should I fail in this 
undertaking, God, be a Father to the fatherless and a 
husband to the widow, for Jesus' sake." 

Although the preparations for this journey had taken 
Livingstone some little time, they were few in number and 
simple in details. The baggage was reduced to as small a 
compass as possible, and consisted of only such articles as 
the party were absolutely compelled to have. Indeed, at the 
last moment many things were left which it seemed they 
could not do without; but Livingstone knew that it was al- 
most as bad to start out on such a journey overloaded as it 
was to go with nothing at all. The outfit consisted of ten 



184 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



or twelve pounds of biscuit, two or three pounds of tea, 
twenty pounds of coffee, and about half as much sugar. 
Besides these provisions, there was a tin canister containing 
a few pieces of cloth and a small collection of beads, as pro- 
pitiatory presents for the unfriendly tribes they should meet 
on the way. In regard to this matter of presents, Living- 
stone would have liked to go better prepared, but he had 
no means of his own to enlarge the supply, and he was un- 
willing to allow Sekeletu to do so. If his slender store 
should j)rove insufficient, which he did not doubt, he trusted 
in a beneficent Providence to show him another way out of 
the difficulty. A second canister jcontained a small stock 
of medicines, a nautical almanac, Thomson's Logarithm 
Tables, a Bible, and a lined journal. Much has been said 
in praise of this lined journal. Every page of it was an 
eloquent witness of Livingstone's patient and painstaking 
nature. It was truly a wonderful book, being a " strongly 
bound quarto volume with a lock and key." Nearly every 
line of the writing within was as neat and clear as though 
it were lithographed. Occasionally, however, there was a 
page with the " letters beginning to sprawl," or a blot or 
two here and there where the unruly pen had refused to 
carry the ink smoothly. Doubtless these were done at 
times when, we are told, he " could neither think nor speak, 
nor tell any one's name, possibly not even his own if it had 
been asked him ; at times when he felt the fiery tongues of 
the fever lapping up every atom of his vitality. But to go 
on with the outfit: there was a change or so of clothing for 
Livingstone, and a suit each for the Makololo men when 
they should reach civilized life. Their stock of fire-arms 
and ammunition consisted of three muskets, two rifles, one 
double-barreled gun, five or six pounds of powder, and about 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 185 



one hundred and fifty pounds of ball and shot. A small 
gypsy tent, a horse-rug, two blankets for Livingstone's use, 
a magic lantern, and a sextant and compass, completed the 
equipments. At the last moment Sekeletu gave Living- 
stone two or three elephant tusks, which he was obliged to 
take, or else deeply wound the generous young chief. It was 
fortunate that he took them, as it afterward proved, for 
they were the means of providing the starving party with 
more than one meal. 

Surely never before did an expedition of such vast impor- 
tance start out with so little preparation; but what this lit- 
tle band lacked in the quantity of its appurtenances it made 
up in the quality of its members. They were all men of 
pluck and endurance, and were indued with a determina- 
tion to follow their brave leader wherever he might lead 
them, even to the death. 

The party left Linyanti on the third day of November, 
1853. Nearly seven thousand people assembled to see them 
off, and made the ground fairly tremble with their shouts 
as the line of brave and sturdy men went filing by. The 
route was to be first by the Chobe to its junction with the 
Zambesi, over much of the way Livingstone had previously 
gone with Sekeletu, to its junction with the Leeba; thence 
along the latter river until the countries of the Lobale and 
the Londa were reached, the one on the right bank of the 
river and the other on the left: at this point they were to 
leave the canoes and make the rest of the journey on the 
backs of the oxen which Sekeletu sent along for the pur- 
pose. Sekeletu accompanied the expedition as far as Ma- 
nuku,the town at which Livingstone had fust met Sebitu- 
ane. Here he left them, after a most affecting scene with 
Livingstone. 



186 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



The average speed made by the canoes on their way down 
the Chobe to Sesheke was five miles an hour, the men who 
were leading the oxen along the bank regulating their prog- 
ress by that of the boats. But of course neither the party 
on the water nor that on the land could keep up this rate 
ali the time, nor did they attempt to travel steadily through 
the day. The general plan Avas to paddle or march from 
six to eleven o'clock in the morning, and from four to seven 
in the afternoon; but sometimes, owing to different control- 
ling circumstances, these hours were varied. 

At Sesheke the travelers met with a warm reception from 
Moriantsane, a brother-in-law of Sebituane, and the head 
man of that village. Livingstone had met Moriantsane on 
his previous visit with Sekeletu, as they were returning down 
the river, and had been greatly impressed with him. In 
some respects he reminded him of Sebituane, though he 
had nothing like that great chief's intelligence or tact in 
managing affairs. Moriantsane supplied them with milk, 
meal, honey, and other delicacies, and sent messengers up 
the river to the different villages, with instructions to see 
that the people had food ready for Livingstone and his at- 
tendants. 

Livingstone preached to the natives several times while 
at Sesheke. His favorite place of instruction was under an 
enormous camel -thorn tree that stood near the bank of the 
liver. He had no trouble in getting together an audience: 
the moment it was announced that he wa,s going to preach 
men, women, and children began filing in long lines from 
their huts, all intent on getting there as soon as possible, 
and all moving forward in the best order. This was one 
of the principal things Moriantsane had sought to impress 
upon his people when he heard of Livingstone's expected 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 187 



return — that they must preserve the utmost quiet and at- 
tention throughout his stay, especially when he was instruct- 
ing them. 

Once while Livingstone was preaching, Moriantsane's 
keen eyes saw two young men who were busily working on 
a skin instead of listening to the missionary. The indig- 
nant old man rose up in the assembly, and hurled his spear 
straight at the offending young men. Had they net been 
previously warned, so that they dodged just in time, he 
would surely have killed one of them. After that the peo- 
ple took care to cease every employment the moment Liv- 
ingstone began to speak. 

While at Sesheke the explorers had a novel encounter 
with alligators, and one that came near proving fatal to a 
brave Makololo man. The river was fairly alive with the 
hideous creatures, and they seemed to grow bolder and more 
savage as their numbers increased. Many poor women and 
children, and even men, had been devoured in the presence 
of their terror-stricken relatives. The children seemed to 
be the alligators' special object of prey: they were general- 
ly caught as they went to the river for water. One after- 
noon as Livingstone and three or four of his men were 
grossing the river in a canoe, they were attacked by an al- 
ligator of unusual size. A sudden stroke of the huge scaly 
tail sent one of the men who was not on his guard head- 
foremost into the river. Immediately the monster brute 
wheeled around, and as the poor man came up caught him 
by the thigh. Livingstone shut his eyes in horror, for he 
thought the man's last hour had come, there not being 
a gun or weapon of any kind in the boat with which to 
assist him. But the Makololo was not only brave, he had 
great presence of mind. Even while in the alligator's -rasp 



188 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 

he had managed to reach a small, square, ragged-edged jav- 
elin he wore at his belt. With this he dealt the animal a 
sudden and tremendous blow behind the shoulder. Writh- 
ing with the pain the alligator instantly let go, and began 
furiously lashing the water all around with his tail. The 
instant the man felt himself released he made a straight 
dive, and, coming up out of the water a little distance 
away, was hauled into the canoe. He was unhurt, save by 
the alligator's teeth upon his thigh, and this wound was 
more painful than serious. 

Moving on up the Zambesi, our party — thanks to Mori- 
antsane — found a warm welcome from the people of the 
villages, and also food in abundance. This generally con- 
sisted of meats and fruits of various kinds. Many of the 
fruits were pleasant and refreshing to the taste, and cu- 
rious and interesting in their formation. One was about 
the size of an orange and nearly of the same color. Inside 
it was composed of a number of seeds or pins, something 
like those of the orange, "imbedded in layers of a pleasant 
juicy pulp." Livingstone afterward learned that from the 
seed and rind of this fruit the natives derived a substance 
not unlike a variety of mix vomica, which in turn was con- 
verted into a capital substitute for strychnine. Another 
fruit, called mabole, was about the size of the date, and 
when stripped of its seed and dried had much the appear- 
ance of the date. In this state it was most palatable, with 
a flavor of strawberries, strange to say. When thus dried 
it could be kept a long time, and our travelers found it a 
serviceable addition to their stock of edibles. Still another 
of these fruits was the mamosho, which has been already de- 
scribed. 

The course of the party up the Zambesi is thus detailed 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 189 



by Livingstone : "When under way, our usual procedure 
is this: We get up a little before five in the morning; it 
is then beginning to dawn. While I am dressing, coffee is 
made; and having filled my pannikin, the remainder is 
handed to my companions, who eagerly partake of the re- 
freshing beverage. The servants are busy loading the ca- 
noes while the principal men are sipping the coflee; and 
that being soon over, we embark. The next two hours are 
the most pleasant part of the day's sail. The men paddle 
away most vigorously. The Barotse, being a tribe of boat- 
men, have large, deeply developed chests and shoulders, 
with indifferent lower extremities. They often engage in 
loud scolding of each other, in order to relievo the tedium 
of the work. About eleven we land, and eat any meat 
which may have remained from the previous evening meal, 
or a biscuit w 7 ith honey, and drink water. After an hour's 
rest w 7 e again embark, and I cower under an umbrella. 
The heat is oppressive, and being weak from the last attack 
of fever, I cannot land and keep the camp supplied with 
fresh meat. The men, being quite uncovered in the sun, 
perspire profusely, and in the afternoon begin to stop, as if 
waiting for the canoes which have been left behind. Some- 
times we reach a sleeping-place two hours before sunset, 
and, all being troubled with languor, w T e gladly remain for 
the night. Coffee again, and a biscuit, or a piece of coarse 
bread made of maize-meal or that of the native corn, make 
up the bill of fare for the evening, unless w r e have been fort- 
unate enough to kill something, when we boil a potful of 
flesh. This is done by cutting it into long strips and pour- 
ing in water until it is covered. When that is boiled dry 
the meat is considered ready." 

Along the river-banks they saw many trees of new and 



190 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



pleasing varieties. Some of these Livingstone succeeded in 
classifying; others puzzled him greatly. Numerous inter- 
esting birds, plants, and vines also attracted his notice. 
Some of them were new and strange to him, while others 
seemed as old friends. Among the birds that he readily 
recognized were pigeons, plovers, and turtle-doves. The 
low, sad, yet exceedingly sweet plaint of these doves, cud- 
dled together in the sweeping branches of the trees, sounded 
very familiar, as did also the clamorous cry of the plovers 
wheeling overhead. Soon from among the latter Living- 
stone detected an alien sound, and one that struck oddly 
upon his ear. It was a harsh, metallic-like call that sound- 
ed like the tap of a hammer upon a copper kettle. After a 
time he discovered that this peculiar cry came from a bird 
known among the natives as the setula tsipi. or hammering- 
wire — a name that was indeed appropriate. It was of the 
plover species, though a little smaller than the average size 
of that bird. Livingstone also discovered something else 
in regard to the hammering-wire — that it was identical with 
the bird so famous for its close friendship with the crocodile 
of the Nile. The reader will doubtless recall some of the 
stories of how this bird has been known to enter between 
the distended jaws of the crocodile, and there feed upon the 
many tormenting insects that attach themselves to the in- 
side of the animal's mouth. Because of this friendly aid 
the crocodile looks upon the little hammering-wire in the 
light of a benefactor, and never willingly molests it in any 
way, sometimes lying for hours with widely open jaws, pa- 
tiently waiting for the bird to get through and come out. 
One of these birds being shot by the party, Livingstone 
made a closer examination of it, and found growing from 
the top of its wing at the shoulder a sharp spur very much 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 191 



like that of a cock's, and about the same size. This he 
readily inferred was given to the bird as a means of de- 
fense. He discovered many other beautiful and interesting 
things in regard to the different birds and their habits, 
thereby contributing to the useful facts of African natural 
history. 

In some places, principally where the banks were steep, 
Livingstone came upon several strange birds'-nests. Some 
of them were hanging from the midst of low brambles, some 
were pendent from the trailing tangles of vines, while oth- 
ers were in holes in the sand which had been dug out by 
the birds' sharp bills. Sometimes the mother-birds were on 
the nests, sometimes the eggs were exposed. Three of the 
birds that thus built their nests in the sand were the bee- 
eater (a species of the sand-martin), the king-fisher, and a 
bird for which Livingstone could get no name, it being in 
shape somewhat like the pigeon, only its plumage was not 
quite so brilliant or so glossy. In the nests of the bee-eater 
were found from four to seven eggs, pure white in color, and 
about the size of a wren's egg. The eggs of the king-fisher 
were of the same whiteness, only they were more globular 
in shape. 

Livingstone saw quite a number of white cockatoos. If 
one of the party chanced to go near the limb on which a 
cockatoo was sitting, he would at once show fight. Every 
feather on his body seemed to stand out, while the crest at 
the top of his head, which can be opened and shut at pleas- 
ure, would be thrown forward and backward with a rapid 
movement, his small eyes all the while sparkling and flash- 
ing like diamonds, and his voice ringing out in harsh and 
defiant screams almost human. And yet he is a very pret- 
ty bird when in repose. 



192 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTON! 



Pigeons and canaries were seen in large numbers, the 
former being vivid green in color, and somewhat larger than 
our common pigeon. Along the Lecambyc valley many 
canaries were caught and tamed by the natives, and charm- 
ing little singers they proved to be. Tame pigeons were 
also seen hopping about the yards of the huts. This great 
love for birds, Livingstone learned, had been instilled into 
the people by that clever and intelligent chief, Santuru, 
who had shown them how to construct their tree-covered 
mounds. At one of the villages Livingstone was aston- 
ished to see a miniature menagerie. In it were various 
kinds of wild animals and birds, all getting along in per- 
fect harmony. 

A queer bird that was often seen, and interested Living- 
stone particularly, was the snake-bird — so called because it 
swam about in the water with its whole body submerged, ex- 
cept its head and neck, which it darted from side to side 
like the movements of the snake. 

One great enemy of the birds on land was the boomslang, 
or tree-snake, which made sad havoc among the smaller 
birds especially. Attention was generally drawn toward the 
spot where the boomslang lay waiting to seize ils prey by 
the affrighted chatter and shrill screams of all the birds in 
that neighborhood. They seemed either unwilling or un- 
able to flee from the impending danger. Doubtless they 
were paralyzed through fascination. The boomslang's usu- 
al mode of procedure was to select a limb of a convenient 
tree, around which it coiled all but its head and several 
inches of the upper part of its body: these it held erect, 
ready to dart out after any bird that came within its reach. 

Among the aquatic birds Livingstone noticed flamingoes, 
herons, snipes, spoonbills, cranes, geese, and others — too 




13 



SPOONBILL AND COMPANION BIRDS. 



(193) 



194 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



many to name. The ay hale-headed stork was the most 
singular bird of all that he had seen, and strangely at- 
tracted him. He first saw two of these birds standing on 
a little island-like strip near the bank of the river, and 
running their large, broad, ungainly bills in and out of the 
tall, rank grasses that grew along the waters' edge, in search 
of fish and snakes. These bills were shaped very much 
like the body of a whale, from which resemblance they took 
their name. At the end a sharp hook came down over the 
front part of the bill, turning inward. This hook the bird 
used to tear open the carcasses of dead animals, whose 
entrails it devours, leaving the other portions untouched. 
The rest of the bird's body resembled that of the common 
stork, only its legs were longer. Livingstone's men tried 
to get nearer to the birds they saw, but they were too quick 
for them. They next tried to get a shot at them: this also 
the cunning storks circumvented by suddenly wheeling 
Straight up into the air, and then to the thick branches of 
a cluster of trees, where they regained until the enemy were 
out of sight. In color the whale-headed stork is brown, 
with spots of a darker shade intermingled in some places 
with a grayish spot hereand there, each feather of the wings 
being tipped with gray and white. The following in con- 
nection with this curious bird is related of Mr. Pethrick, 
the great Endish traveler: "Having traveled fifteen hum 
dred miles up the Nile, he was hunting one day, and among 
other odd creatures which inhabit that region discovered 
these singular birds. He was anxious to take some of 
them alive, that he might send them to London; but their 
long legs carried them through the swamps so rapidly that 
he found it impossible to take them. They kept in flocks, 
and if fired at flew up from the ground, and, after circling 



LIFE OF DAVTD LIVINGSTONE. 1,95 



around for awhile, would light on the tallest trees and re- 
main there until the hunter was gone. Their nests are on 
the ground near the water, and perhaps surrounded by it, 
and are of the rudest kind. For two years Mr. Pethrick 
labored to raise some of these birds by taking the young 
from the nest, and raising them by hand, or by hatching 
the eggs under hens, but failed. At length lie obtained 
some very fresh eggs, and having a hen about to set, he 
took part of her eggs away and put in the eggs of the bird. 
The hen did not seem to know that she had been imposed 
upon, and took her seat in good faith. In due time she 
came off with her brood, and among the number were five 
with enormous bills which seemed to puzzle her greatly. 
But she soon found that their conduct was much stranger 
than their looks; for cluck and scratch as much as she would 
they paid no attention, but seemed bent upon rushing into 
the pond which the negro boys had dug and filled with wa- 
ter. The mother-hen was greatly distressed, but they went 
their own way; and she took the rest of the brood and went 
hers. The birds were fed on fish, and when the opportu- 
nity offered they were shipped to England. Every care 
was taken on the voyage to keep them in health; but they 
sadly missed their home and food, and one died, then an- 
other, and finally a third. Two, however, survived. A 
pond was given them in the Zoological Gardens, and fish 
in abundance supplied, and they soon revived. The scien- 
tific name of the bird is Baheniceys Bex, which means the 
whale-headed king." 

Livingstone also saw a countless variety of beautiful and 
brilliant wild-flowers, which gave him opportunity for test- 
ing his botanical knowledge. Much of the flora being new 
to him, it sometimes puzzled him greatly; but he soon had 



196 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



quite a number of rare plants pressed and classed into a 
collection that did him much credit. Once, while passing 
a certain point on the river-bank, he came upon one of the 
most beautiful trees he thought he had ever seen. It was 
in full bloom, and the fragrance was delicious. It remind- 
ed him of his own loved hawthorn-hedges at home, only the 
flowers of this African tree were as large as great dog-roses, 
and the haws " the size of boys' marbles." 

All along their journey up the Zambesi they found the 
crocodiles numerous; indeed, at some points they had great 
difficulty in getting past them. The young ones seemed 
almost as savage as the old ones, and would bite furiously 
at the spears of the natives when thrust in among them. 
The men with Livingstone occasionally hunted for croco- 
dile-eggs, which were a great delicacy when prepared in a 
certain way. 

As long as they were in Sekeletu's territory our party 
fared well, people and head men vying with each other in 
showing them attention. The manner of these Makololo 
people, when bestowing benefits, was so hearty and so polite 
in every respect that Livingstone could not but mark the 
contrast between them and the other tribes among whom he 
had lived — even the friendly Bechuanas, who, it must be 
said, were as much noted for their avarice as for their peace- 
ableness. If an ox was given by the Makololo, they would 
say to Livingstone with the greatest simplicity: "Here, 
father, is a little bread for you." On the other hand, when 
the Bechuanas presented a goat they would cry with a loud 
voice and a great flourish: " Behold! behold! an ox!" 

On the 27th day of December the party reached the Lee- 
ba at its junction with the Zambesi. The desired route was 
now as near due west as they could possibly make it. As 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 197 



the Leeba seemed to flow from that direction, they passed 
on up that river. They soon began to meet with cool and 
somewhat equivocal receptions from the various chiefs, the 
reason being that they were fast approaching the extreme 
boundaries of Sekeletu's territory. In a little while they 
would be out of it entirely: then wdio could tell w r hat dread 
evils would lie in their path? 

At the village of Manenko they found the people gov- 
erned by a female chief of the same name. This was in the 
country of the Balonda, when they were well out of Seke- 
letu's domains. When they reached Manenko's village the 
chieftainess was making a visit of state to a neighboring 
town; but she heard of their arrival before they had been 
many days in her capital, and sent a very dictatorial message 
to them to the effect that they must remain there until she 
chose to come, as she wished to see them. Accompanying 
the message she sent as a present a basket of manioc-roots, 
doubtless thinking thereby to conciliate them, and that it 
would serve as a salve for the rather sharp sting of her im- 
perious command. Livingstone neither cared to remain in 
the town nor to show himself in the least swayed by the 
haughty will of the domineering Manenko; so he sent her 
word that his time was precious, and that after the neces- 
sary season of rest he would push on whether she came or 
not. The people of the village were thunder-struck at Liv- 
ingstone's boldness, and heard in dismay that he intended 
to go on in opposition to Manenko's command. They had 
been so accustomed to obey her without questioning, know- 
ing her imperious nature, that they were terrified to think 
of the consequences to Livingstone should he persist in dis- 
regarding her message. They were literally overwhelmed 
with surprise at the turn affairs next took. Catching from 



198 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



the drift of Livingstone's reply to her haughty command 
something of the nature of the man with whom she had to 
deal, and being also nearly consumed with curiosity in re- 
gard to him through the several reports that had reached 
her, Manenko entirely changed her tactics. Her next com- 
munication was in the form of a polite request that the 
whole party should visit her at the village where she was 
then, and offering all kinds of inducements to them if they 
would come. But this Livingstone also declined, for, as he 
had already spent four days in Manenko's village, he had 
no more time to waste. 

As they were encamped near another village, the chief. 
Sheakonda, with two of his wives, three of his sons, and a 
score or more of his people, visited them. All were greatly 
struck with Livingstone's appearance, and wanted to fall 
down on their knees to him, thinking him a mighty chief 
from over the wonderful sea of which they had heard. 
Their reason for thinking he had come from beyond the sea 
was that his face was so white and his hair so light and 
straight that the sea-water had washed the color out of one 
and the kink out of the other as he came swimming through 
it. This revealed in part the fearful state of darkness and 
ignorance in which they dwelt. Livingstone was too noble 
to take advantage of their superstition and turn it to his 
own purposes, as many might have been tempted to do un- 
der the circumstances; so he explained to them as well as 
he could that he had not come through the water of the sea, 
but over it by means of a great ship — w ? hich he tried to de- 
scribe to them — and that his face had always been white 
and his hair straight. But he could make nothing clear, 
and was forced to receive their homage. 

Sheakonda and his people were most frightful-looking ob- 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 199 



jeets. When they first approached the camp Livingstone 
and his entire party believed that they had come for a hos- 
tile attack, and began preparing for it as well as they could ; 
but the chief and his companions soon convinced them of 
their friendly intentions. They were almost nude, having 
only a piece of the skin of some animal bound about the 
waist. From head to foot their bodies were tattooed in all 
kimteof hideous devices, their teeth were sharpened off to 
points, and their hair dressed straight up from their heads 
and made to stand out stiff with rancid animal fat. But in 
spite of their hideous looks, they were inclined to be very 
friendly, and immediately on reaching the camp greeted Liv- 
ingstone and his men with assurances of their peaceful in- 
tentions. The chief displayed much hospitality, inviting 
Livingstone and his head men to the village, and promising 
to give them as much manioc-root as they could eat. The 
wives of the chief, however, did not seem so generously in- 
clined, and had evidently come to camp with an eye single 
to business. Each brought a basket of manioc-roots, which 
she signified a desire to exchange for butter or for any 
kind of fat the party might have with them. This fat they 
were anxious to possess in order to polish up their bodies, 
as well as to dress their hair anew. Desiring to be on the 
best of terms with them, Livingstone requested his men to 
make the exchange, though they could ill spare what little 
fat remained from the last animal they had slain. They 
had a pound or two of butter, which they had with difficul- 
ty obtained at one of the villages through which they had 
passed. Livingstone also directed his men to give a portion 
of this to the women, who were overjoyed when they saw it. 
The moment the elder of the two wives received the butter 
she began rubbing herself with it, not waiting to get away 



200 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 






from the camp. The other, however, was more deliberate. 
She waited until she was some distance away, then stopped 
and rubbed the butter on her body with as much relish as 
the other had shown. She seemed to be the chiefs favorite 
wife, and the belle of the village as well. The style she as- 
sumed was enough to have put to the blush the most fin- 
ished drawing-room young lady of to-day. Around her an- 
kles were various iron rings, to which were attached small 
bits of sheet-iron, with here and there a fragment of brass. 
These, striking together as she walked, gave forth a tinkling 
sound, the effect of which she tried to increase by a minc- 
ing stride. This amused Livingstone greatly, and he com- 
pared it to the jaunty step he had seen some of the dragoons 
at home affect when off duty and passing the inspection of 
feminine eyes. 

Livingstone found Sheakonda "a fine specimen of the un- 
sophisticated savage." He was struck with awe and much 
disturbed in his mind when Livingstone read to him a chap- 
ter from the New Testament, and explained it to him 
through an interpreter. He wanted to learn more, and en- 
treated Livingstone to remain longer and teach him. It 
was one of the sorest trials through which the good mission- 
ary had been called to pass to have to refuse him. The 
only way he could reconcile himself to the refusal which 
circumstances forced him to make was to form the resolu- 
tion to return at some future day, should life and strength 
be spared to him, for the purpose of missionary labor among 
Sheakonda's people. 

On reaching the confluence of the Leeba and the Makon- 
da, one of Livingstone's men picked up a small piece of steel 
watch-chain. This caused a hope to spring up in Living- 
stone's heart that some English travelers intent be near. 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 201 



His disappointment was very great, therefore, when he 
learned that this was the point where the Mambari crossed 
and recrossed in going to and coming from Masiko on their 
slave-dealing expeditions, and that the chain was doubtless 
dropped by one of them. 

The Mambari brought Manchester goods, beads, etc., 
into the valley. Finding it much to their advantage, they 
worked upon the credulity of the natives by telling them 
that both the calico and the beads came out of the sea. As 
the articles were altogether different from any they had 
ever seen, or even dreamed of, the poor ignorant creatures 
readily believed the story. But when Livingstone came he 
told them better. They were overcome with surprise when 
he explained to them how the cloth was woven and printed. 
They exclaimed : " How is it possible for iron to spin, weave, 
and print so beautifully? Truly they who make them do 
that are gods." 

On coming into the valley of the Leeba and the Leeam- 
bye, Livingstone's heart began to fail him for the first time 
since he entered upon the journey. He felt that he would 
soon be brought into contact with the most revolting aspects 
of the slave traffic, and he knew not how he should be able 
to endure the sight without rushing to the rescue of the mis- 
erable victims. 



CHAPTER XIV. 



QUESTIONABLE HOSPITALITY — AT THE VILLAGE OF NYAMOANA — 
A CORDIAL RECEPTION — THE BALONDA COURT OF STATE— GAL- 
LANTRY OF LIVINGSTONE — PROPOSED JOURNEY TO SHINTE's 
TOWN— ARRIVAL OF MANENKO — THE START FOR KABOMPO — 
MARCHING THROUGH THE RAIN — INCIDENTS OF THE WAY. 



THE farther Livingstone and his men went up the river 
the more frequent became the cool receptions accorded 
them by the chiefs. From some they met with a questionable 
sort of hospitality — that is, they would be invited into the 
villages and fed, but on preparing to leave they would find 
that many of their most valuable things had been stolen. 
Sometimes, too, they encountered great danger from war- 
like tribes; but Livingstone's courage and tact always car- 
ried them safely through. Many tribes through which 
they passed while ascending the Leeba were governed by 
female chiefs. Nearly all of them were quite friendly, 
though not inclined to give themselves much trouble to en- 
tertain the travelers. Most of them were strong-minded 
and determined women, and often showed more tact in the 
conduct of both state and family affairs than two-thirds of 
the male chiefs Livingstone had met. 

On the 6th of January the party entered the village of 
the female chief Nyamoana. Livingstone was by no means 
favorably impressed when he learned that she was the 
mother of Manenko. He was afraid she might possess 
some of her daughter's determined qualities, and give him 
trouble; but Nyamoana proved agreeable and tractable in 
(202) 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



203 



every way. She was a popular ruler, and her tribe one of 
the largest and most important. Her power was euhauced 
because she was the favorite sister of Shinte, the greatest 
Balonda chief in all that country. His territory extended 
for hundreds of miles, and the chief himself did not know 
half his people. Isyamoana's tribe had but recently come 
to their present locality, having removed thither from one 
more unhealthy farther down the river; hence their new T 
village was far from being complete. Notwithstanding this 
fact, Nyamoana prepared to receive the Livingstone party 
in the grandest style the village could afford. She gave 
them audience sitting on a raised couch covered with skins. 
This hastily improvised throne was placed midway of a cir- 
cle about thirty paces in diameter, which was raised a foot 
or more above the level of the ground, with a trench ex- 
tending around it. By the side of Nyamoana sat Samoana, 
her husband. He wore a short kilt of red and green baize, 
which hung from his waist two-thirds of the distance to his 
knees. His hair, as well as that of his wife, was dressed 
with the most consummate skill of the Balonda hair-dress- 
er's art, being made to stand out stiff with some kind of 
rank-smelling tallow, and adorned with numerous feathers, 
principally those of small birds. Samoana held in one 
hand a spear and in the other a curiously carved broad- 
sword of antique pattern. This sword attracted Living- 
stone's attention at once. It was about eighteen inches 
long and three broad, of finely tempered steel and most 
skillful workmanship. Livingstone wondered how Samoana 
came into possession of such a weapon in the heart of a 
savage country, where none of the people were known to 
be skilled in such arts. Afterward, on questioning the chief 
in regard to the matter, he could learn nothing. Samoana 



204 LIFE OF DAVJD LIVINGSTONE. 



either did not know the history of the sword or did not 
care to tell it. 

Just behind the chief and her husband was a hideous old 
woman with a " bad squint in her eye," and an emaciated 
form that seemed little more than skin and bone. This was 
a witch-doctor, whom every member of the tribe looked up 
to with reverence, because of the superior wisdom she was 
supposed to possess. Outside the trench surrounding the 
raised circle of earth, on which were enthroned the chief and 
her husband, sat about two hundred of the people, ranging 
in a^e from the youngest children to old men and women. 
The men were armed with spears, bows, and arrows — one 
or two having broad-swords similar to Samoana's. 

On approaching the assembly, Livingstone and his party 
laid down their arms about forty yards distant. The Mako- 
lolo men then took their places on the outside of the raised 
circle, while Livingstone went on to within a few r feet of the 
couch of skins on which sat Kyamoana and her husband. 
Standing erect in front of them, Livingstone threw both 
arms upward over his head, let the palms of his hands come 
together, and then brought his arms down again to his side. 
He next made a movement as though taking some sand 
from the earth, and with the same hand rubbed vigorously 
once or twice across his chest. This he had previously 
learned was the Balonda manner of salutation. Evidently 
much pleased that he had so soon become versed in their 
court etiquette, the savage pair bade him come still nearer, 
and motioned to him to occupy a mat that had been spread 
in front of them; but before taking his place upon it, Liv- 
ingstone made Kyamoana one of his courtliest bows. This 
seemed to flatter her very much, for she smiled all over her 
ebony face, showing a perfect set of snow T -white teeth. 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



205 



After making his bow to Nyamoana, Livingstone turned and 
bowed to Samoana, and began to address him. The little 
savage was distressed at this procedure, and, with one eye on 
Livingstone and the other on his wife, made violent gest- 
ures to signify that he was but a figure-head in the royal 
show; that to his wife belonged all the honor, and to her 
Livingstone must address all his remarks. Livingstone 
then made Nyamoana another bow, and, catching a second 
gesture from her, at once took his place upon the mat she 
had pointed out. 

On trying to converse with the chieftainess, Livingstone 
found that, with all his knowledge of the native dialects, 
he could make little progress either in comprehending her 
or in making himself understood. He therefore felt under 
the necessity of calling one of his men, Kolimbota by 
name, to act as interpreter. Livingstone describes the " pa- 
laver" that now ensued as not only roundabout in the ex- 
treme, but highly amusing. Hearing Livingstone call one 
of his men, and thinking this was the manner of conducting 
state interviews in his country, Nyamoana also called one 
of her men. Kolimbota then proceeded to repeat to Nya- 
moana's man what Livingstone said. The man delivered 
it to Nyamoana's husband, and the latter to Nyainoana— 
all this in accordance with the directions of Nyamoana 
who seemed to think that the more roundabout the form of 
procedure the more fashionable it would be. As may be 
presumed, it took some time to dispose of even a few sen- 
tences. To add to the ludicrousness of the proceeding, 
Nyamoana, her husband, and her speaking-man delivered 
their parts in voices raised so high that all in the circle out- 
side could hear every word, which it was doubtless intended 
they should do. Livingstone was nearly deafened, espe- 



206 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



daily by the shouting of Nyamoana's speaking-man, who had 
a voice that would have brought a fortune to an auctioneer. 
Livingstone frankly avowed the object of his expedition. 
Nyamoana was greatly interested, and declared her friend- 
liness to the undertaking, assuring him of all the aid she 
could render. Her next questions were of the country 
whence Livingstone had come; then of Livingstone him- 
self. Thinking to gain her interest still further, and to es- 
tablish the utmost confidence and good-will between them, 
Livingstone called her attention to his hair, then to the 
whiteness of the skin of his arms and chest in comparison 
with that of his hands and face, which had been bronzed by 
the sun. Nyamoana seemed delighted at this assertion in 
regard to the sun, as well as flattered by a certain sugges- 
tion it conveyed. "Then it was the sun, after all," she 
exclaimed, "that turned my people black! Now, if you 
were to go like my people," pointing to their nude bodies 
as she spoke, "you would be as black as they! We tire, 
then, of a common origin, after all." Deeming it no harm 
to allow her thus to deceive herself, Livingstone silently 
acquiesced. He next called Nyamoana's attention to his 
hair, which, being somewhat long and of a light brown 
color, had excited the admiration of all the savage tribes 
he had visited. " My ! my ! " exclaimed Nyamoana in great 
wonder, " is that hair? Why. surely it is not! No! no! it 
is the mane of a lion, and not hair at all." She would not 
believe that it was his hair until she had felt of it and pulled 
it to see if it grew to his head. She thought it was a wig 
he had made for himself out of lion's hair, as her people 
sometimes made wigs for themselves out of the fibers of the 
" ife " which they dyed black and twisted, so as to resemble 
their stiff and woolly locks. 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 207 



Nyamoana was charmed with Livingstone and his courtly 
manner, and at the end of the conference declared that he 
and his men should have the liberty of her village and the 
utmost hospitality of her people. Pleased by her cordiality, 
and wishing to make what return was in his power, Living- 
stone drew still nearer, for the purpose of showing her his 
watch and pocket-compass, and to explain their workings. 
But when she heard the watch tick she became frightened, 
and nothing could induce her to look at watch or compass. 
Her husband, however, showed keen interest in both — they 
were the greatest curiosities he had ever seen, and he did 
not want Livingstone to put them up again. 

Livingstone and his Makololos remained with Nyamoana 
and her people some five or six days, during which time 
they were most hospitably entertained and accorded the 
greatest deference. On expressing his intention of continu- 
ing the journey by means of the canoes up the Leeba, 
Livingstone met with much opposition from Nyamoana. It 
was of the friendliest sort, however. She told him she did 
not believe the Leeba was the nearer and better route; that 
there was another that lay by way of the land, and if he 
could but find that she was sure it would prove the less 
difficult and dangerous. With a view to his gaining infor- 
mation about this route, she advised Livingstone to visit 
her brother, KShinte, the powerful Balonda chief to whom 
reference has been made. He had been quite a traveler in 
his youth, and could tell much of the country, as he had 
doubtless penetrated it to a considerable distance. Another 
reason Nyamoana had for dissuading Livingstone from tak- 
ing the river route was that she had heard that there was a 
large and dangerous cataract and numerous rapids higher 
up the stream. Before they were aware of it, she wiggested, 



208 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



he and his men might be drawn into some of these perilous 
places and dashed to pieces on the rocks. There was still 
another reason, and perhaps the most important of all. The 
majority of the tribes along the river-banks farther up were 
extremely hostile, and even with all Livingstone's tact it was 
doubtful if the travelers could go through in safety. Liv- 
ingstone felt grateful to Nyamoana for her friendly interest, 
and after consultation with his men determined to visit 
Shinte, although he had not fully made up his mind to aban- 
don the river route. 

While the explorers waited at Nyamoana's town to make 
the necessary preparations for the land journey to Ka- 
bompo, the town where Shinte lived, the Amazon-like Ma- 
nenko appeared upon the scene, much to Livingstone's cha- 
grin. Her curiosity to see Livingstone had been so great 
that, notwithstanding her indignation at his refusal to heed 
her messages, especially the last one, she had determined to 
follow him up the river. Hearing of him at her mother's 
town, she had hastened on as fast as her rowers could bring 
her, fearing that she might again miss him. 

Manenko arrived in great state, accompanied by her hus- 
band, Sambanza, and a small retinue of attendants, the 
whole procession headed by a strapping drummer with an 
enormous drum covered with ox-hide, upon which he beat 
noisily and incessantly. Nyamoana and her attendants 
met and welcomed the approaching visitors, and then ensued 
the loud pounding of a second drum and the rattling of 
many gourds. 

Manenko and her husband ran forward to greet Living 1 
stone after the fashion of their people. When within a few 
steps they stopped suddenly, fell upon their knees, and 
dipped their foreheads over as though they would strike 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 209 



them against the ground; then picking up a handful of 
sand, they rubbed it upon their arms and chest, and once 
more bowed their heads over, finally rising to their feet 
while they scattered more sand over themselves, this time 
in a shower that covered the greater portion of their bodies. 

Livingstone w T as not prepossessed with Manenko's appear- 
ance, though he afterw-ard found out that she had a good 
heart with all her Amazon-like propensities. She was only 
about twenty years of age, but well-grown, and exceedingly 
tall for a woman. Her limbs were strong and massive, and 
her carriage in every way masculine. She had gotten her- 
self up in grand style, in order to make as deep an impres- 
sion as possible upon Livingstone. Her only covering was 
a short kilt-like skirt that hung from her waist to within a 
few inches of her knees. About her body was a profusion 
of charms and medicines, pendent from every conceivable 
fastening-place. The exposed portions of her body were 
thickly smeared with a horrid-smelling compound of rancid 
butter and red ocher. When Livingstone asked her why 
she did not go better clothed, she was quite indignant, and 
pointing to the charms and innumerable little sacks of 
medicine that dangled from her person, declared that she 
was so well clothed that no one could possibly outdo her. 
Finding that Livingstone meant all he said in the kindliest 
spirit, she admitted that as a chief it was necessary in order 
to win the proper influence over her people, and to impress 
them with a sense of her bodily endurance, that she should 
show her utter indifference to any clothing that protected 
her body from the weather. 

When Manenko heard of the proposed visit to her uncle, 
Shinte, she declared that it was the very thing, and an- 
nounced her purpose to go with the party. Livingstone 
14 



210 LIFE OF IJ^VID LIVINGSTONE; 



was taken aback at this announcement, and when he 
learned that Manenko designed taking charge of the bag- 
gage of the party and directing the whole arrangements of 
the journey, his chagrin knew no bounds. But he was 
satisfied that it would not do to oppose the will of the 
determined Manenko. It was like putting the hand out 
against an impetuous stream of water, and hoping by this 
feeble means to stop its onward rush. However, he had 
made up his mind that he would exercise his authority in 
regard to the baggage at least; but she gave him such a 
tongue-lashing that he was glad to leave her in complete 
possession. His sturdy Makololo were also driven away by 
this u black Mrs. Caudle," as Livingstone called her. But 
the most amusing thing of all was that Manenko followed 
after Livingstone, and pointing to her attendants, who 
meekly stood about waiting upon her pleasure, said with a 
most patronizing air as she laid her hand upon his shoulder: 
"Now, my little man, you just take it easy and make up 
your mind to do as the rest are doing — that is, as I tell 
them to do." These words, and the tone in which she 
spoke them, humbled the Doctor's vanity for many a day. 
True, he was a small man, but he didn't like to be told of 
it by this Amazon, who towered full a head above him; 
neither did he like to be patronized in so condescending a 
manner. Still he excused it all on the score of Manenko's 
training. Had she been a civilized feminine ruler, our 
fearless and independent Doctor would not have submitted 
so tamely. The first stage was the crossing of a stream 
that flowed past Nyamoana's village. Before Manenko en- 
tered the canoe in which she was to cross, her doctor 
fastened more "charms" to her body. He also waved his 
arms above her head two or three times, muttering some in- 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 211 



cantation designed, as Livingstone conjectured, to drive out 
whatever evil might still be lurking within her. The doc- 
tor had with him a queer-looking basket, supposed to con- 
tain medicine. This he placed on the ground at his feet. 
While passing near it one of Livingstone's men called out 
to another in a loud voice. The doctor turned upon him 
angrily, looking hurriedly at the basket as if afraid some- 
thing therein had been greatly disturbed by the noise. As 
the party were embarking in the canoes, Manenko's drum- 
mer began thumping vociferously upon his great, ungainly 
instrument of ox-hide. The din was so deafening that Liv- 
ingstone was really thankful when a drizzling rain set in 
and compelled the musician (!) to desist. This rain proved 
something more than a drizzle; after awhile it began to 
come down in a copious shower, to which there seemed to 
be no diminution. In vain Manenko's doctor and her hus- 
band uttered their incantations and made frantic gestures, 
with the hope of frightening the rain away, as they said. 
Down it poured steadily, in spite of them. 

The party having crossed the stream and inarched into 
the forest, it was thought best by some of the older mem- 
bers to call a halt and take shelter from the rain ; but to 
this proposal Manenko would not listen. On she went at a 
pace which few of the men could equal. Even Living- 
stone, on oxback as he was, found it difficult to keep up 
with her. He was further annoyed by her turning around 
every now and then to encourage him with a motherly and 
patronizing air. The Makololo's admiration of the pedes- 
trian powers of Manenko and their astonishment at her 
pluck and hardihood were unbounded. They frequently ex- 
claimed: "There never was such a woman before! But 
Manenko is no woman; Manenko is a chief and a soldier." 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



This pleased her so much that she smiled most benignly 
upon the admiring Makololo; and from that time forth she 
was their sworn protector. Livingstone preferred that his 
men should restrain their enthusiasm, as it seemed but an 
incentive to Manenko to redouble her efforts. Wet, cold, 
hungry, and thoroughly exhausted, every one of them was 
rejoiced when near the close of their first day's march Ma- 
nenko ordered rest and refreshment. 

As they advanced, Livingstone noticed further evidences 
of a discovery he had made while sojourning at Nyamoana's 
town — that the Balonda were not only a very superstitious 
people, but much given to idolatry. They were the first of 
the African tribes among whom he had noted the latter 
tendency. Each hut in the towns had its hideous idol rudely 
carved out of wood, while the distorted image of a human 
figure of some kind was placed near the entrance to every 
village. Thus, while continuing the journey to Shinte, 
the travelers could always tell when they were nearing a 
village by seeing these blocks of wood set up in some con- 
spicuous place about a quarter of a mile from the town. 

The way to Shinte's capital lay through dense forests, and 
often across swamps formed by the junction of small streams 
which were in many instances barely passable. For sev- 
eral days the rain continued to fall in torrents, increas- 
ing the discomforts and difficulties of the journey. Living- 
stone was still weak from the fever that had seized him at 
Linyanti just after the exposures of his march thither. 
Besides this, for the past three weeks his diet had been 
most unsatisfying, there being a scarcity of cattle in the Ba- 
londa and other tribes of that section. Many whole vil- 
lages did not own more than half a dozen head. Their 
principal articles of subsistence were vegetables, fruits, and 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 213 



roots. A long continuance of such fare as this, when he 
had been used to meat at least once a day, often three times, 
rendered Livingstone very weak, and it was all that he 
could do to keep up through the journey. The hardships 
of the way were still further increased by the fact that they 
were often sorely pressed for a sufficiency of food of any 
kind. They found the inhabitants of many of the villages 
reluctant to grant them even a scanty supply of the com- 
monest food. Such a contrast as they were to the generous 
and hospitable Makololo! It was but natural that Living- 
stone shoild turn with. feelings of deep longing to his old 
friends at Linyanti. 

Several times Livingstone would have lost heart but for 
the indomitable Manenko. She had established herself 
close by his side from the start, and kept constantly chat- 
ting with him in the liveliest manner as they went along. 
Once, seeing that the brave missionary was about to give 
way, through weakness superinduced by want of proper 
nourishment, Manenko herself went off to beg food for 
him at one of the villages. Although the head man was a 
subject of her uncle, she only succeeded in getting five small 
ears of maize. These she roasted for Livingstone after a 
fashion of her own, and never had any food seemed so good 
to him. After this brave and generous act, lie had a better 
opinion of the Amazon-like yet warm-hearted Manenko. 

Occasionally the wearied and famishing party were re- 
freshed by the mushrooms which the rains had caused to 
spring up during the night. Some of them were as large 
as the crown of a man's hat, and snow-white in appearance, 
Others were of different colors — one variety of a dark blue, 
quite unlike any Livingstone had ever seen before. Some- 
times, too, they found an artificial bee -hive tilled with 



214 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



golden honey. Then, indeed, they had a feast; yet they 
took L r ood care to leave full value in exchange for the store 
they had abstracted. These artificial hives were formed by 
stripping the bark whole from a tree, then sewing it up and 
closing both ends; a hole was next made in it for the bees 
to pass in and out, after which it was hung up to a tree. 

As they drew nearer to Shinte's town the people grew 
more hospitable, especially when they learned that Ma- 
nenko was Shinte's niece. Once or twice this hospitality 
sheltered them from the rain in a very curious fashion. The 
inhabitants of some of the towns lent them the roofs of 
their huts. Livingstone tells us that these resembled noth- 
ing so much as a Chinaman's hat. They were made of 
straw, and could be lifted on and off at pleasure. The vil- 
lagers took them off and brought them to Livingstone and 
his men at their camping-place, with the polite tender of 
their use for the night. Livingstone having accepted them 
with thanks, his men would prop them up on stakes driven 
into the ground, and they then had a. very comfortable 
shelter from the rain. 

Our travelers at times spent the night in the huts within 
the villages, not always finding people who were obliging 
enough to remove their roofs and convey them to the place 
of encampment. As they were stopping at one of these vil- 
lages an amusing thing happened. We will let Livingstone 
relate it in his own words: " One night we were all awak- 
ened by a terrible shriek from one of Manenko's ladies. 
She piped out so loud and so long that we all imagined she 
had been seized by a lion, and my men snatched up their 
arms, which they always place so as to be ready at a mo- 
ment's notice, and ran to the rescue; but we found that the 
alarm had been caused by one of the oxen thrusting his 






LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 215 



head into her hut and smelling of her; she had put her 
hand on his cold, wet nose, and thought it was all over with 
her." 

Nyamoana had taken the trouble to send runners for- 
ward to notify Shinte of Livingstone's approach, and to 
suggest that he should receive the missionary cordially, 
as he was a most wonderful man. When within twenty- 
five or thirty miles of Kabompo, Livingstone's party were 
met by messengers from the chief. These brought the as- 
surance of Shinte's most hospitable welcome. At the same 
time they said to Livingstone that their chief a felt highly 
honored at the prospect of entertaining three white men in 
his town at one time." This intelligence made Livingstone's 
heart beat quicker than it had for many a day, and for the 
time he forgot his weakness and his fever. Who could the 
other two white men be? If Europeans like himself, how 
great would be his joy at once more beholding the faces of 
fellow-countrymen ! This thought was like an invigorating 
tonic; but he could not believe such good news possible. 
There was surely some mistake. "Are you sure they are 
white men?" he asked the messengers. " Yes, quite sure," 
was the reply. "And arc they of the same color as I am?" 
"Yes, of the very same color." "And have they the same 
hair?" At this question they for the first time observed 
Livingstone's hair, from which he now removed his cap. 
They were as much amazed at the sight of it as Nyamoana 
and her people had been. "Why, is that hair?" they asked 
in astonishment. " It surely is not ! It is a wig. It is a wig 
that you have made of the mane of a lion, only it is softer 
and straighter than the hair of a lion. What beast can it be 
of whose hair you have made the wig you wear? " ( hi being 
allowed to examine it, and to pull it to see if it really grew 



216 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



to his head, they exclaimed with more amazement than ever: 
"Well, well, well! we never saw the like before! This 
white man," turning to the Makololo attendants, and point- 
ing to Livingstone, "that you have brought hither must be 
of the same kind that lives in the sea. Where did you get 
him? Yes, yes, the sea has surely washed all the kink from 
his hair and made it as the lion's." "And those other white 
men, whom you say are approaching the town of your chief 
— have they hair like mine?" repeated Livingstone. "We 
know not if their hair is as yours," was the answer. " Their 
messenger never stated. Only this much we do know: they 
sent our chief word that they were white men, and he is 
now preparing for their reception and for yours." "And 
from what direction are they approaching?" "From the 
west." "Ah! "thought Livingstone, "that is the direction 
whither white men live. Can it be that they are Euro- 
peans from the coast?" His hopes were raised to the 
highest pitch; but, alas! they were doomed to a crushing 
disappointment. The other white men expected at Shinte's 
town, and for whom he had made such great preparations, 
turned out to be half-caste Portuguese slave-traders — the 
very last persons with whom Livingstone at that time cared 
to come in contact. They were the low T est and vilest of 
their class. 



CHAPTER XV. 



THE CHARMING SITUATION OF KABOMPO — AN IDEAL NATIVE VIL- 
LAGE — THE BLOT THAT OBSCURED THE SMILING FAIRNESS OF 
THE SCENE — THE RECEPTION AT THE KOTLA— THE PRIVATE IN- 
TERVIEW WITH SHINTE — MANENKO AGAIN HEARD FROM— THE 
IMPRESSIONS CREATED BY THE MAGIC LANTERN — SHJNTE's 
WATER-DRAWER — SAMBANZA IS GIVEN MORE THAN A CURTAIN 
LECTURE — LIVINGSTONE IS SHOCK ED BY A PROPOSAL OF SHINTE's 
— PREPARATION TO LEAVE KABOMPO — THE CHIEF GIVES ELO- 
QUENT PROOF OF HIS FRIENDSHIP. 



KABOMPO, the capital of the Balonda tribes, stood 
in a delightful green valley, with a clear and beau- 
tiful stream winding through it. Beyond, it was shut in 
by many verdure-crowned, cup-shaped hills, their outlines 
being rendered more easily traceable by the deep blueness 
of the sky that closed about them. The valley reminded 
Livingstone of one among his own native hills, where 
Mary, the fair Queen of Scots, had witnessed the battle of 
Langside; only the Scotch scene was but "a miniature of 
the much greater and richer landscape before hiiu." It 
was pathetic to see the brave yet often home-sick man con- 
stantly coming upon some charming bit of scenery that re- 
called his fondly loved home-land so far away. Every river 
that flowed. in quiet and lovely meanderings reminded him 
of the Clyde; every vale took on the entrancing phases of 
one he had known and loved among the hills of Caledonia, 
while the mountains were the very same, only lacking the 
bonny heather so dear to Scottish eyes. 

(217) 






218 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



The arrangement of Shinte's capital was both neat and 
picturesque. The village, with its cluster of huts, stood 
near the upper end of the valley. It was completely em- 
bowered by tall, beautiful trees, many of them of the ban- 
yan variety. The huts were well and strongly built. They 
had square walls, the first Livingstone had yet seen in any 
native African village. The roofs were circular and com- 
pactly thatched with straw, so that the inhabitants were 
comfortably sheltered from the weather. There were nu- 
merous broad streets leading through the town, with rows 
of magnificent trees planted on both sides. Attached to 
each hut. was a patch of ground inclosed with a firm and 
well-arranged fence of stout poles set upright in the ground 
an inch or so apart. Between these intervening spaces were 
run back and forth long wisps of stout grass ingeniously 
woven together, and worked in much after the fashion of 
the strands linking the half-panel, half- wire fences of to- 
day. In these patches of ground were growing tobacco, 
sugar-cane, bananas, and many kinds of vegetables, which 
proved that Shinte's people were far from being amateur 
farmers. The bananas were especially attractive, throwing 
their tall, graceful shoots, with their long and beautiful 
leaves, high above the roofs of the huts, while their green- 
and-golden bunches of delicious fruit, from the ends of 
which were pendent streamers of vivid scarlet and purple, 
made glowing flecks of color here and there. Growing 
outside the fence inclosing the patch.es, in many instances 
just where they could throw their shade about the doors of 
the huts, were immense specimens of the Ficus indica fam- 
ily, which the natives held in high veneration. 

Livingstone thought that he had never seen a more pre- 
possessing native town, nor one in which the people showed 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



219 



greater evidence of thrift. Bat the fair picture was over- 
shadowed by the presence of the two half-caste Portuguese 
slave-traders, who were even at this early date preparing to 
enter upon the horrible business that had brought them 
thither. They already had with them a company of slaves, 
the greater part women and children, and all of them in 
chains. The Makololo could not restrain their indicia- 
tion at this inhuman spectacle. "They are not men who 
treat children so ! " they declared. While deeply regretting 
the revolting sight that they had been called upon to witness, 
Livingstone could not but feel glad of the opportunity that 
had afforded them such a lesson. He hoped they would 
take it deeper and deeper to heart as time, went on, and 
feeling thus would steadfastly make up their minds to throw 
the full weight of their opposition against the advance of 
the slave traffic in their own section. 

About eleven o'clock on the morning after their arrival 
at Kabompo, Shinte gave Livingstone and his attendants a 
grand reception in the kotla. As the intrepid Manenko 
had given way beneath the heavy burden she had put upon 
herself during the march, and was lying in one of the huts 
completely exhausted, Sambanza claimed the honor of pre- 
senting Livingstone and his Makololos to Shinte. While 
they were getting ready to start fronrthe huts for the kotla, 
three volleys of musketry in rapid succession greeted their 
ears. Livingstone, inquiring what it meant, learned that 
it was the Portuguese slave-traders and a company of 
Mambari, who accompanied them, firing a salute in honor 
of Shinte. He also learned that it was the custom of these 
people to go fully armed all the time, and to lire rounds 
complimentary to the chiefs of the various villages where 
they stopped. This had the effect of working upon the 




ONE OF SHINTKS SUBJECTS. 



(220) 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 221 



royal vanity, as the wily traders knew it would do. With 
their fire-arms they also took along a drummer and two 
trumpeters, whose sole object seemed to be to see just how 
much noise they could make. 

The kotla, or place of audience, was about a hundred 
yards square. At the upper end grew two magnificent 
specimens of the banyan-tree, the more tender and pliable 
of their many graceful fronds drooping over in curves of 
sinuous beauty. Within the shadow cast by one of these 
trees sat Shinte, on a throne formed of a mound of grass 
and rushes, covered with a glossy leopard-skin. He had 
arrayed himself in his grandest style. A flashily checked 
short jacket covered the upper portion of his body, the 
lower edge just reaching to the waist. From the waist 
downward hung a kilt of scarlet baize edged with green. 
About the neck were fastened numerous strings of shining 
glass beads, while his limbs, which w 7 ere all perfectly nude, 
were bound about with various bands of copper and iron. 
Around the wrists were an immense pair of copper bracelets, 
from which dangled numberless little bits of brass and iron. 
His ankles were inclosed by bands of the same device as 
those of his arms. On his Head there was a massive hel- 
met formed of beads closely woven together, the whole be- 
ing surmounted by a great cluster of goose-feathers. Near 
him sat three youths with large sheaves of arrows hung 
over their shoulders and a bow r in their hands. Behind 
these were about one hundred women, clad in green and ml 
baize — the wives of Shinte. One of them, who Living- 
stone learned was the chiefs principal wife, sat somewhat 
in front of the others. She was more gaudily dressed than 
her companions, having, in addition to other articles they 
had not, a curiously (shaped red cap trimmed with brads 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



and feathers, like the helmet worn by her husband. She 
was of the Matabele or Zulu tribe, and was much honored 
by Shinte. Livingstone was no little surprised to see these 
women present at a public reception — all the more so when 
they sat in honored seats near their royal spouse, and were 
allowed to do as they pleased all through the various cere- 
monies. He says: "In the south the women are not al- 
lowed to enter the kotla, and, even when invited to come 
to a religious service there, would not enter until ordered 
to do so by the chief; but here they expressed approbation 
by laughing and clapping their hands to different speakers ; 
and Shinte frequently turned around and spoke to them." 

When Livingstone and his party entered the kotla, the 
whole of Manenko's suite saluted Shinte by throwing their 
hands up over their heads and clapping them loudly to- 
gether; then apparently taking up a handful of sand, they 
rubbed their chests vigorously. Sambanza applied to his 
chest genuine ashes, with which he had taken the precau- 
tion to provide himself. Seeing that the space beneath 
one of these trees was unoccupied, Livingstone made his 
way toward it, very grateful for the shade it afforded, since 
the sun was now high in the heavens and shining with 
great power. What next took place can be best described 
in Livingstone's own words: "The different sections of the 
tribe came forward in the same way that we did, the head 
man of each making obeisance with ashes which he carried 
with him for the purpose; then came the soldiers, all armed 
to the teeth, running and shouting toward us, with their 
swords drawn, and their faces screwed up so as to ap- 
pear as savage as possible, for the purpose, I thought, of 
trying whether they could not make us take to our heels. 
As we did not, they turned round toward Shinte, and sa- 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



22;i 



luted him, then retired. When all had come and were 
seated, they began the curious capering usually seen in 
pichos. A man starts up, and imitates the most approved 
attitude observed in actual fight— as throwing one javelin, 
receiving another on the shield, springing to one side to 
avoid a third, running backward or forward, leaping, etc. 
This over, Sambanza and the spokesman of Nyamoana 
stalked backward and forward in front of Shinte, and gave 
forth, in a loud voice, all they had been able to learn, either 
from myself or people, of my past history and connection 
with theMakololo; the return of the captives;* the wish to 
open up the country to trade; the Bible as a word from 
heaven ; the white man's desire for the tribes to live in 
peace; he ought to have taught the Makololo that first, for 
the Balonda never attacked them, yet they had assailed the 
Balonda; perhaps he is fibbing, perhaps not; they rather 
thought he was; but as the Balonda had good hearts, and 
Shinte had never done any harm to any one, he had better 
receive the white man well and send him on his way. 3am- 
banza was gayly attired, and, besides a profusion of beads, 
had a cloth so long that a boy carried it after him as a train. 
During the intervals between the speeches the women be- 
hind Shinte burst forth into a sort of plaintive ditty; but 
it was impossible for any of us to catch whether it was in 
praise of the speaker or themselves. A party of musicians, 
consisting of three drummers and four performers on the 
piano, went round the kotla several times regaling us with 
their music. Their drums are neatly carved from the trunk 



'•' It seems that very soon alter starting on the journey to the sea 
Livingstone persuaded a trader to relinquish bis captives and allow 
them to return to their homes; not, however, without first reward- 
ing him pecuniarily, as we may well believe. 



224 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



of a tree, the ends covered with the skin of an antelope. 
The piano, named ' marimba,'* consists of two bars of wood 
placed side by side — here quite straight, but, farther north, 
bent round so as to resemble half the tire of a carriage- 
wheel; across these are placed about fifteen wooden keys, 
each of which is tw T o or three inches broad and fifteen or 
eighteen inches long; their thickness is regulated ac- 
cording to the deepness of the note required; each of 
the keys has a calabash beneath it; from the upper part 
of each a portion is cut off to enable them to embrace the 
bars and form a hollow sounding-board to the keys, which 
are of different sizes, according to the note required; and 
little drum-sticks elicit the music. Rapidity of execution 
seems much admired among them, and the music is pleas- 
ant to the ear. In Angola, the Portuguese use the marimba 
in their dances. When nine speakers had concluded their 
orations, Shinte stood up, and so did all the people. He 
had maintained true African dignity of manner all the 
while, but my people remarked that he scarcely ever took 
his eyes off me for a moment. The sun had now become hot ; 
and the scene ended by the Mambari firing off their guns.'* 
There were about a thousand persons present at this re- 
ception, which was a fine proof of Shinte's pow*er and stand- 
ing in the section. Owing to some misarrangement, Liv- 
ingstone and Shinte were kept apart all through the exer- 
cises, so that at the close they had not exchanged a word. 
Livingstone thought it was in accordance with Kabompo 
court etiquette, while Shinte kept waiting for the Doctor to 
make the first advances, it not being in accord with his dig- 
nity to make it himself. But it was remarked by others 
besides Livingstone's own attendants that Shinte scarcely 
removed his eyes from the missionary. 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 225 



Soon after the meeting at the kotla Livingstone received 
from Shinte the summons to a private interview. He found 
the chief quite frank and straightforward and inclined to 
be friendly. He was about fifty-five or fifty-six years old, 
of medium height, and very dignified in bearing. Living- 
stone met Shinte in that open, fearless manner he had al- 
ways found the most winning with the African chiefs and 
people. Shinte was pleased with Livingstone, and heartily 
approved the plans of the proposed expedition from the 
moment they were made known to him. At the close of 
the conference Livingstone asked the chief if he had ever 
seen a white man before. Shinte hastily replied: "Never. 
You are the very first white man I have ever seen with a 
white skin and straight hair. Your clothing, too, is differ- 
ent from any I have ever seen." Thereupon he set to work 
with great curiosity to examine the various articles of Liv- 
ingstone's dress. 

On receiving the hint "that Shinte's mouth was bitter for 
want of tasting ox-flesh/' Livingstone hastened to present 
him with an ox, though he could ill spare it. The chief 
was delighted, for it was a great treat, his people being al- 
most as destitute of cattle as Manenko's. Livingstone 
thought it too bad that the Balonda, especially those of 
Shinte's town, should not possess cattle, since they had such 
capital grazing-ground for them. He also thought it a good 
opportunity to let fall a hint into Shinte's ear; so he told 
him of the Makololo and the Barotse and of the immense 
herds of cattle they possessed. When he had done this, 
and got Shinte's enthusiasm aroused to the proper pitch, 
he asked the shrewd old chief if he did not think it would 
be a first-rate idea for him and his people to trade with the 
Makololo for cows. Shinte jumped at the suggestion, de- 
15 



226 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



daring it the very thing. On his return from the coast 
Livingstone was greatly pleased to find that Shinte had so 
far followed his advice as to get for himself three fine cows, 
one of them the sleekest and fattest heifer Livingstone had 
yet seen. 

When Shinte was proffered the ox by Livingstone, he 
was much elated, and declared that he was going to give a 
feast right away to his chief wives and principal men. 
Alas! he soon found out that there was an opposing force 
to consult first. As he did not consult it, he was violently 
taken aback when he came in collision with it unawares. 
When Manenko heard that Livingstone had presented an 
ox to her uncle, she became so indignant and so angry, be- 
cause the transaction had taken place without her knowl- 
edge or consent, that she almost drove her attendants to 
their wits' end by her furious reproaches. "The white man 
belongs to me!" she indignantly declared, "and all he pos- 
sesses is mine! I brought him here and his belongings too, 
therefore the ox is mine, and not Sliinte's! What right has 
Shinte to it, anyhow? I will show both him and the white 
man that Manenko is not to be fooled with." Calling sev- 
eral of her men, she made them go at once and bring the 
ox to her before Shinte could get it. When they returned 
with it, she ordered it slaughtered immediately. At first 
she said that Shinte should not get one smell of it; but 
after awhile, relenting somewhat, she sent him a leg of the 
ox. Just what Shinte thought of this behavior of Manen- 
ko's was not known, as he kept his own counsel in regard to 
the matter. Evidently he had long ago learned the folly 
of opposing his will to Manenko's. 

While at Sliinte's town* Livingstone gave several exhibi- 
tions with his magic lantern. At first the people were 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 227 



greatly frightened, and it was only after the second or third 
exhibition that he could induce them to approach near 
enough to hear what he had to say in regard to the pictures. 
He gives this description of one of the first exhibitions: 
"The first picture exhibited was Abraham about to slaugh- 
ter his son Isaac; it was shown as large as life, and the up- 
lifted knife was in the act of striking the lad; the Balonda 
men remarked that the picture was much more like a god 
than the things of wood and clay they worshiped. I ex- 
plained that this man was the first of a race to whom God 
had given the Bible we now held, and that among his chil- 
dren our Saviour appeared. The ladies listened with silent 
awe; but when I moved the slide, the upright dagger mov- 
ing toward them, they thought it was to be sheathed in 
their bodies instead of Isaac's. 'Mother! mother !' all 
shouted at once, and off they rushed helter-skelter, tum- 
bling pell-mell over each other and over the little idol-huts 
and tobacco bushes; we could not get one of them back 
again. Shinte, however, sat bravely through the whole, 
and afterward examined the instrument with great, in- 
terest." 

In time, when the patient and frank manner of Living- 
stone had more fully won upon the confidence of the people, 
especially the women, there was no trouble in getting them 
to the exhibition. They often came in such crowds that 
not half of them could get within sound of Livingstone's 
voice, or catch a glimpse of the pictures. As many of the 
pictures were upon Bible subjects, Livingstone found them 
a profitable means of teaching the Balonda sacred truths. 
Soon the fame of the magic lantern extended for miles out- 
side of the village, and he had at the exhibitions other ex- 
cited and wonder-struck lookers-on besides Shi nte's people. 



228 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



Livingstone was highly amused while at Kabompo by 
watching the maneuvers of Shinte's chief water-drawer. 
She was a large, masculine-looking woman, almost as de- 
termined as Manenko. As she passed along the streets she 
would ring a bell as a signal for every one to keep out of 
her way. Livingstone was told that it was considered a 
great offense for any one to come near her while she was 
going for or returning with the water, as in this way an 
evil influence would be thrown about it, rendering it unfit 
for the chief to drink. 

Before he had been many days among the Balonda, Liv- 
ingstone was shocked to find that they were much given to 
intoxication — a thing almost unknown among the tribes 
farther south. They brewed a kind of beer that was largely 
drank among them, even the women imbibing it sometimes 
to a disgraceful extent. On one occasion poor Sambanza. 
who had hitherto kept clear of the evil through fear of his 
sharp-tongued spouse, got so drunk that it was all he could 
do to steer himself to the royal hut. Manenko saw him 
coming, and the rapidity with which she "bundled him in," 
as Livingstone expressively said, betokened a still warmer 
reception to come. 

Livingstone's spirits were considerably raised on learn- 
ing from Shinte that he had been quite a traveler in his 
youth, and that he had men who had gone with him on 
these travels, who "knew all the paths leading to the white 
men." He told Livingstone that several of these followers 
— headed by one Intemese, who knew the language of most 
of the tribes between Kabompo and the coast — were at his 
service as attendants; also that it was his intention to fur- 
nish him and his little company with enough provisions to 
last them through several stages of their journey. 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 229 

The following incident occurred a flight or two before the 
departure from Kabompo.' It had a harrowing effect upon 
the sensitive nerves of the brave and kindly man whose 
tender heart bled as he thought of the woes of some of the 
miserable beings among whom his lot had been cast. Let 
Livingstone tell the incident: "One night Shinte sent for 
for me, though I always stated that I liked my dealings to 
be above-board. When I came he presented me with a 
slave girl of about ten years old. He said that he had al- 
ways been in the habit of presenting his visitors with a 
child. On my thanking him, and saying that I thought it 
wrong to take away children from their parents — that I 
wished him to give up this system altogether, and trade in 
cattle, ivory, and bees- wax — he urged that she was to be 'a 
child' to bring me water, and that a great man ought to 
have 'a child' for that purpose, yet I had none. As I re- 
plied that I had four children, and should be very sorry if 
my chief were to take away my little girl and give her 
away, and that I would prefer this child to remain and 
carry water for her own mother, he thought I was dissatis- 
fied with her size, and sent for one a head taller. After 
many explanations of our abhorrence of slavery, and how 
displeasing it must be to God to see his children selling one 
another, and giving each other so much grief, as this child's 
mother must feel, I declined her also. If I could have 
taken her into my family for the purpose of instruction, 
and then returned her as a free woman according to prom- 
ise I should have made to her parents, I might have done 
so; but to take her away, and probably never be able to se- 
cure her return, would have produced no good effects in 
the minds of the Balonda. They would not then have seen 
evidence of our hatred to slavery; and the kind attention 



230 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



of my friends would, .as it almost always does in similar 
cases, have turned the poor thing's head. The difference 
in position between them and us is as great as between the 
lowest and the highest in England ; and we know the effects 
of sudden elevation on wiser heads than hers, whose owners 
have not been born to it. ' 

At their last interview the chief seemed so much affected 
by the impending separation that he could only converse 
in broken sentences. He had become closely attached 
to Livingstone, and it pained him deeply to see him go. 
As Livingstone was about to withdraw at the close of the 
interview, Shinte called him back, and taking from his 
neck a string of beads, to which was attached a large sea- 
shell, threw it around Livingstone's neck before the latter 
had time to surmise his intention or offer any remonstrance. 
"There now!" cried Shinte, "you have a proof of my 
friendship ! " Livingstone afterward discovered that it was 
indeed a signal mark of the chief's favor and esteem, and 
the highest honor in Shinte's power to bestow. In fact, in 
regions farther from the sea it was considered " of as great 
value as the lord-mayor's badge in London." They had not 
been many days on their route until Livingstone learned 
from his men that "for two such shells a slave could be 
bought ; and five of them were looked upon as a handsome 
price for an elephant's tusk worth ten pounds." Though he 
had no intention of dealing in elephant tusks, and the mere 
thought of the purchase of a slave made his blood run cold 
with horror, Livingstone felt his heart warming more and 
more toward the manly and generous savage who had given 
him so magnificent a proof of his friendship. 



CHAPTER XVI. 



A COUNTRY OF LUXURIANT FORESTS — FURTHER SIGNS OF IDOLATRY 
— A POTENT QUESTION — THE u GREAT LORD KATEMA " — LIVING- 
STONE RENDERS AN IMPORTANT SERVICE — KATFMA's GRATITUDE 
— THE II03PITALITY OF JUS PEOPLE— THE GOOD MOZLNKWA AND 
HIS WIFE — AN AMATEUR SNUFF MANUFACTURER— THE STORY OF 
THE CROSS — A WIND FROM THE NORTH — CROSSrNG THE GREAT 
WATER-SHED OF THE NORTH AND SOUTH RIVERS — INHOSPITABLE 
TRIBES — AN EXTORTIONATE " ITKEMAN " — THE STEADFAST DE- 
VOTION OF THE MAKOLOLO. 



LIVINGSTONE left Kabompo on the 24th of Janu- 
ary, 1854. His course to Loanda was to be directly 
west by north-west. For some distance from Shinte's town 
the way lay through deep, luxuriant forests, interspersed 
with fertile plains. The party found it difficult to push 
their w r ay across some of these plains, as they had been cov- 
ered with water to the depth of several feet by recent heavy 
rains. As long as they traveled in Shinte's territory they 
were provided with an abundance of food and given shelter 
at night. 

Livingstone continued to note evidences of the idolatrous 
tendencies of the various tribes. In the forests medicines 
and "charms" were fixed to the trees, as propitiatory gifts 
to an unseen power of which they seemed to stand in great 
dread. Sometimes bundles of twigs were fastened among 
the limbs of the trees, to which each passer-by was expected 
to make an addition, or else suffer most dreadful conse- 
quences through the anger of the invisible spirit 

(231 



232 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



Livingstone ascertained that white men had been heard 
of by older members of the tribes, yet no living man could 
be found who had ever seen one. The Doctor was there- 
fore a great curiosity to the people, who eagerly examined 
his hair, his skin, and his clothes. One day he and his men 
unexpectedly entered a small village in the depths of a 
large forest. It was at noon, and the inhabitants were all 
enjoying their "siesta."' Livingstone's sudden appearance 
in their midst so frightened the villagers that fully two- 
thirds of them fled to the woods. The women especially 
were terror-stricken, and one of them went into convulsions 
as Livingstone approached. When they saw Intemese, and 
heard his explanations, their fears were somewhat allayed. 

The men sent by Shinte were of great service; indeed, 
Livingstone could not have gotten along without them — yet 
they had one trait that annoyed him greatly. After beg- 
ging food at the villages they would steal it from him. . Still 
they were "very clever and good-natured fellows'' and 
most valuable guides, as they knew the country well. 

While passing through the country of the Loanda, he 
overheard one of the inhabitants ask a Makplolo man, who 
had been telling him of the cattle possessed by his people, 
" if he brought a canoe down by water to the Makololo's 
country, could he barter it for a cow." An affirmative an- 
swer was quickly given, and seemed to please the Loanda 
men greatly. Livingstone made a note of this, and sought 
to foster the desire among others of the tribe. He also 
marked a valuable suggestion conveyed by the Loanda man's 
question — "a belief in the existence of a water communica- 
tion between the region in which Livingstone then was and 
that whence he had started. " How encouraging, after all, 
the prospect seemed for the opening up of "legitimate com- 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 233 



mercial intercourse" between the more remote tribes of the 
continent, and thus in time entirely crushing out the slave 
traffic. The farther Livingstone proceeded the more heart- 
rending became the evidences of the inhuman practice. 
Nor were the chiefs and people behind the traders in their 
acts of inhumanity. Of one chief in particular, Matiamvo 
by name, Livingstone learned that "if he fancied any thing 
— for, example a watch-chain of silver wire — he would sell 
a whole village to buy it. If a slave-trader visited him, he 
took possession of all his goods; then, after ten days or a 
fortnight, he would send out a party of men to pounce upon 
some considerable village, and having killed the head man, 
would give the trader all the inhabitants to pay for his 
goods." All this made Livingstone very unhappy, and 
with all his fervor he prayed for the speedy coming of that 

day 

When man to man the world o'er 

Should brothers be for a' that. 

The scenery of the Loanda country was most charming. 
Beautiful green meadows, through which trickled thread- 
like streams, stretched away for miles. The uplands were 
picturesque, and luxuriant in verdure. The abundance of 
vegetable food was almost fabulous, though greatly to Liv- 
ingstone's regret there was little game. The people told 
him that at onetime there had been a plentifulness of ani- 
mal life, but that it had either decreased through the rav- 
ages of disease, or else the animals had grown shy from 
hunting and withdrawn to distant regions. Occasionally 
they came upon a lonely, prowling animal, usually of the 
leopard or tiger variety; but instead of making signs of at- 
tack, it would slink away, as if conscious of its own weak- 
ness in the absence of its fellows. 




A FOREST PROWLER. 



(234) 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 235 



Several weeks after starting, the expedition came to the 
town of a chief named Kate ma. He was very bombastic, 
and amused Livingstone on ti eir introduction by making a 
speech that was self-laudatory in the extreme. He began 
by announcing himself as "the great Moene [Lord] Kate- 
ma, of whom you have heard." As the Doctor had never 
heard of him, the self-laudation was all the more notable, as 
well as amusing. Livingstone and his fellow-travelers were 
received by this "great Lord Katema," seated on some 
banyan-boughs raised in imitation of a throne, and covered 
with skins of various small animals. Behind him sat his 
wives, as Shinte's had done, while three or four hundred of 
his people were seated in a semicircle around him. From 
his pompous demeanor, Livingstone expected an overwhelm- 
ing reception. He was therefore much surprised when, at 
the conclusion of Intemese's speech— in which he had made 
known to the chief Livingstone's "history, doings, and in- 
tentions" — Katema placed before him twelve large baskets 
of meal, half a dozen fowls, and a dozen eggs, saying: 
"There! give that to the white man and his friends, and 
tell them to go to the houses my people will show him, and 
cook and eat, and he will then be much more fit to speak 
with me at the audience I will give him to-morrow." Of 
course the party needed no second bidding, but at once 
went to the huts to prepare the feast which the generous 
Katema had provided. In their hearts they voted him a 
capital host for ministering to the inner man instead of de- 
taining them by the long and monotonous ceremonies of a 
public reception. 

At the private interview accorded him, Livingstone was 
still more amused by a repetition of Katema's bombastic 
speech — this time with some additions. Rising from his 



236 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



couch, and "looking as if he had fallen asleep tipsy, and 
dreamed of his greatness," Livingstone tells us, Katema 
thus delivered himself: " I am the great Moene Katema 
[Lord Katema], the father of Matiamvo. There is no one 
in the country equal to Matiamvo and me. I have always 
lived here, and my fathers before me. There is the house an 
which my father lived. You found no human skulls near 
the place where you camped? Well, I have never killed 
any of the traders, as some have done. They all come to me ; 
they come in trust. I am the great Moene Katema, of 
whom you have heard.' , Nevertheless, Livingstone found 
him possessed of a fine stock of both " humor and good 
humor." He put trust in him from the first, "for," as he 
pointedly remarks, " a man who shakes sides with mirth is 
seldom very difficult to deal with." 

The personal appearance of the chief is thus described: 
"He was a tall man about forty years of age; and his head 
was ornamented with a helmet of beads and feathers. He 
had on a once snuff-brown coat, with a broad band of tin- 
sel dowu the arms, and carried in his hands a large tail 
made of the caudal extremities of a number of gnus, which 
had charms to it." 

On closer acquaintance Livingstone found his estimate of 
Katema's character correct ; for he was not only " not dif- 
ficult to deal with," but he was most generously inclined. 
Livingstone's frank and courageous manner had a good ef- 
fect upon the chief. He soon intimated his purpose of send- 
ing three guides with Livingstone into the country beyond. 
He also told the explorer of a better route than that by 
which he had planned to go. It was more northerly, and 
hence much longer; but Livingstone did not mind this, 
especially when the chief told him that it would take him 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 237 



around many of the more dangerous and disagreeable of 
the overflowed plains, and out of the direct course of the 
slave-traders. Livingstone felt that he would be willing to 
take almost any route in preference to that cursed by the 
" bitter Nemesis of the slave-trade." 

While at Katema's town Livingstone rendered a most 
important service to the chief. Unlike the Loanda and Ba- 
londa chiefs, Katema had a fine herd of cattle raised from 
two he had purchased from the Balabale many years be- 
fore. They were beautiful animals, almost as white and 
fully as graceful as elands. As they had been allowed to 
run in a semi-wild state, they were now so shy that they 
could scarcely be approached. Katema knew nothing of 
obtaining the milk from them. When Livingstone spoke 
to him of it he was greatly surprised ; he did not see how 
such a thing could be possible. Securing one of the least 
timid of the cows, Livingstone showed Katema how to ex- 
tract the milk from the udder. The chief was delighted 
when he found that it was quite easy, and that he himself 
could do it. Livingstone also showed him how, besides be- 
ing drank, the milk could be put to the purposes of curding 
and churning. Katema's joy increased, and he declared 
that there was nothing he would not do for Livingstone in 
return. His joy and gratitude, however, did not cause him 
to present a cow to Livingstone for meat; perhaps he did 
not think of it. Livingstone was forced to kill one of his 
own oxen, as the mouths of some of his men were daily 
growing more and more " bitter for want of tasting ox-flesh." 
The companion of the ox that had been slain seemed incon- 
solable at his loss, and went about lowing piteously. For 
many days he would take no food, and his cries were dis- 
tressing. The Makololo, looking pitifully at the poor ani- 



288 LTFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



mal, said: "Poor fellow! poor fellow! "Now; he thinks, 
' they will kill me as weil as my friend, and I might as well 
die of my own accord/ ,J Katema and his people, on the 
other hand, thought that Livingstone had in some way be- 
witched the ox, and begged him to give them a charm 
against the animal. 

Livingstone was much taken with Mozinkwa, the head 
man of Katema's village, and his wife — he l>ad but one. 
Both of them were above the average run of savage intel- 
ligence. They lived in a little hut to themselves in the 
midst of a large and well -tended garden. Their home 
was a picture of neatness, order, and thrift. The garden 
was inclosed by "a living and impenetrable wall of banyan- 
trees," and another tree threw its delightful shade about 
their door-way. Mozinkwa and his wife were extensive 
cultivators of cotton, which occupied a large field back of 
the premises. In the garden grew many plants " used as 
relishes to the insipid porridge of the district" — castor-oil 
plants, Indian brignalls, yams, sweet potatoes, beans, and 
peas. 

Livingstone was much affected by the reverence paid him 
by Mozinkwa and his good wife, and was most grateful for 
their lavish hospitality. On parting with them he promised 
to bring the wife enough cloth from "the white man's coun- 
try " to make her a dress. But, alas! on his return he 
found the good woman dead, and the heart-broken Mozink- 
wa moved away, as he could not bear to remain on the spot 
where his faithful companion had died. 

Quendende, the father-in-law of Katema, was quite a 
character in his way. His personal appearance is thus de- 
scribed by Livingstone: "A fine old man, with long woolly 
hair reaching to the shoulders, parted on either side, and 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 239 



the back hair gathered into a lump on the nape of the 
neck." He was a great snuff-taker, and spent much of his 
time manufacturing the "titillating powder'' in a private 
establishment planned and erected by himself, and which 
had the pretensions, if not the facilities, of more modern 
ones. Here Quendende dried the tobacco-leaves before a 
fire until they were of the desired crispness, when they 
Avere pounded in a mortar and pronounced ready for use. 
Quendende entertained Livingstone and his whole party at 
his cluster of huts, and occupied himself in teaching the 
Makololo to take snuff. 

On attempting missionary labor among Katema's people, 
Livingstone found them ready to listen, but dull of compre- 
hension. They seemed deeply interested when he told them 
of the mighty and gracious God who had sent his own Son 
to earth to die for sinful men, and who had really died in 
their stead. Livingstone described the last agony on the 
cross in such a manner that the people were much moved, 
and many of them cried out in the excess of feeling. And 
all this, he assured them had been done through pure love 
and pity for the lost souls of men, such as theirs were if 
they did not accept this gracious Saviour who had come to 
suffer and die for them. When he told them of any tiling 
else it did not seem to impress them much; but this story 
of the Saviour, pierced by thorns and wounded by spears, 
enduring death for the sins of others, even for those who 
mocked and spit upon him, always wrought most power- 
fully upon their feelings. 

Livingstone made a deep impression upon Katema and 
his people. On parting with them, many ran after him and 
entreated him not to leave. His Makololo men had also 
won the confidence of the people to such an extent that 



240 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



when they were departing the people said to them : " How 
we wish our children could go back with you to the Mako- 
lolo country! Here they are all in danger of being sold." 
Poor creatures! they foresaw only too well the danger that 
threatened them. On saying good-by to Katema, Living- 
stone presented him with several small articles, at the same 
time apologizing for the meager offering. But Katema was 
delighted and expressed his thanks over and over again. 
When Livingstone asked what he should bring him from 
the coast, he smiled broadly while he said: "Any thing 
from the white people's country will please me greatly, and 
make me very thankful; but, if you have a mind so to do, 
you may bring me another coat just like this one," pointing 
to the old snuff-colored garment he wore, "as it is nearly 
worn out." Livingstone promised that he would keep the 
request in mind, and the two parted with mutual expres- 
sions of regard and good wishes. 

The iutrepid little band started from Katema's town on 
the 20th of February, 1854, in the presence of a vast con- 
course of regretful people. Before they had- proceeded 
very far Livingstone had a novel experience. For the first 
time since he had bfeen in Africa he felt a cold wind blow- 
ing from the north. Heretofore, in the country of the 
Bechuana, the Makololo, the Barotse, and other South 
African people, the cold winds had always blown from the 
south. This recalled the invigorating breezes of his own 
bonny highlands, and for a few moments home-sickness 
threatened to overcome him. 

The travelers skirted many flooded plains, a few 7 of which 
they were compelled to pass through. Luckily, however, 
the water was not more than knee-deep in any place, and 
often but ankle-deep. Still, it was sufficient to bring on 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 241 



many threatening symptoms of sickness More than once 
Livingstone received warning premonitions of the coining 
on of his old malady, the fever; and but for the liberal 
quantities of quinine with which he from time to time dosed 
himself, he would doubtless have been stricken down. As 
it was, he felt very weak and scarcely able to endure the 
hardships of the way; but his resolute courage and intrepid 
will forced him forward. His one passionate desire was to 
reach the coast, and the "only dread that seemed to possess 
him was that he might succumb before accomplishing his 
purpose.'' 

On getting over the flooded plains the party came some- 
what suddenly upon higher lands. Here, upon an almost 
level yet considerably elevated plateau, Livingstone found 
the water-shed of the northern and southern streams. The 
streams running toward the north fell into the Kasai, or 
Loke; and this, in turn, emptied into the great river Con- 
go, since called Livingstone River. The streams on the 
south unite to pour into the Zambesi. Passing beyond this 
plateau, Livingstone saw some of the deepest and most 
beautiful valleys his eyes ever gazed upon. Indeed, their 
great fertility was a revelation to him. As each of the 
valleys was drained by a running stream, it was not ren- 
dered unhealthy by innumerable pools of stagnant water; 
nor were the trees impeded in their growth by standing in 
these slimy pools, but grew to a great height and with much 
luxuriance. Many of them reared their tops to the dis- 
tance of one hundred and fifty and two hundred feet, with 
"sixty and eighty feet of clean, straight trunk ere the 
branches were reached." In every direction the earth was 
covered with a luxuriant carpet of grasses, bespangled 
with gay clusters of nodding wild flowers, whose rich per- 
10 



242 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



fume filled all the air. The people of this pleasant and 
beautiful country were not in accord with it. They at 
first refused to give the travelers any food unless they were 
compensated by a liberal supply of gunpowder. As Liv- 
ingstone had not an ounce of this valuable commodity to 
spare, the whole party seemed doomed to perish with hun- 
ger. But luckily after awhile they came to a village near 
the Kasai, ruled over by a chief named Kangenke. He 
was not inclined to '"play the generous host;" still, in con- 
sideration of a small quantity of beads and a yard or two 
of cloth, he gave the famishing men food, and sent guides 
with them to show the way over the river. As they were 
passing over the Kasai one of Kangenke's guides, pointing 
to the current, said: " Though you sail along it for months 
you will turn without seeing the end of it." As the Kasai 
and its tributaries unite to form the Congo, which "falls 
into the Atlantic Ocean four degrees north of Loanda," 
whither Livingstone was bound, its course was " long enough 
to give these untraveled savages a high notion of its ex- 
tent," 

On crossing the Kasai, they found the tribes on the 
farther bank were so inhospitable and avaricious that food 
could not be obtained at all save in return for some article 
or articles from their now fast-diminishing stores. Xeither 
was there any game in these woods, not so much as an ante- 
lope or a buck; or if there was, they did not chance to 
come upon it, The evening after they had crossed the 
river one of the guides sent by Kangenke caught a blue 
mole and two mice, which he dressed for his supper, much 
to the envy of the other and less fortunate and much fam- 
ished men who looked on. All this began to tell upon Liv- 
ingstone, who was already run down by the fatigues and 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 243 



hardships of the journey. In a few days he had become 
so weak that he could not have held his gun straight, even 
if there had been any thing to invite his fire. Fever had 
also set in again, in spite of his liberal doses of quinine. 

The following is a revolting picture of the people among 
whom the explorers now found themselves: " In most cases 
they were outwardly very repulsive. Never seen without a 
club or a spear in their hands, the men seemed only to de- 
light in plunder and slaughter, and yet they were utter 
cowards. Their mouths were full of cursing and bitter- 
ness. The execrations they poured on one another were in- 
credible. In very wantonness, when they met they would 
pelt each other with curses, and then perhaps burst into a fit 
of laughter. The women, like the men, went about in almost 
total nudity, and seemed to know no shame. So reckless 
of human life were the chiefs that a man might be put to 
death for a single distasteful word." Yet, despite all this, 
there were redeeming sides to the picture. Sometimes Liv- 
ingstone was surprised by an unwonted exhibition of ten- 
derness. The head man of one of the villages once showed 
him the remains of a burned hut in which his favorite child 
had been consumed. "She perished in it," he said with 
deep feeling, "and we have all removed from our own huts 
and built here around her in order to weep over her grave." 

Katende, chief of one of the villages near which they 
passsed, sent a very insulting message to Livingstone, de- 
claring that he must send him either " a man, some tusks, 
beads, copper rings, or a shell, before he could be allowed 
to go on through the country." Livingstone sent him one 
of his shirts, an article he could ill spare, together with the 
reply that, "if he liked, he might come and take any thing- 
else, in which case he would reach his own chief naked, 



244 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



and have to account for it by telling him that the chief Ka- 
tende had taken them." This reference to Livingstone's 
chief, and the suggestion of possible future vengeance, so 
frightened Katende that he dispatched the party word to 
go on, and sent them some meal, manioc-roots, and a pair 
of fowls. However, he retained the shirt. 

After leaving Katende's town they came to a river with 
a wooden bridge. Here a "pikeman" appeared and de- 
manded toll before he would let them over. They offered 
him one thing and another, but nothing pleased him except 
the copper bracelets of the Makololo. It took three of 
these bracelets to pay the toll, and even then the greedy 
pikeman was not half satisfied; to the last he looked covet- 
ously upon the remaining bracelets. 

Their way now lay across a country intersected by flooded 
streams, many of which were difficult to cross. Through 
more than one of them they had to swim, with their little 
possessions in bundles upon their heads. The Makololo 
were surprised to see Livingstone swim across in his clothes, 
and to do it as well as they could without any. They had 
not known before that he could swim at all. From that time 
they had a higher opinion of his possibilities, and frequently 
showed their contempt for difficulties as long as they had 
Livingstone to guide them. They would say: "He swam 
the river in his clothes. He can take us through any 
thing." Wonderful confidence to have in the powers of 
one poor, weak, half-sick man ! Yet what a host he was in 
himself, when we come to think of it, weakened though he 
was by exposure and worn down by disease! But it was 
not merely the little episode at the river that had strength- 
ened their faith in Livingstone. They had seen him 
tempted and tried; they had seen difficulties heaped in his 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 245 



way — difficulties sufficient to dishearten any mortal man — 
yet he had emerged from them all triumphantly. No 
wonder they felt firmly established within their souls the 
old rock-built trust of Ruth: "Whither thou goest we will 
go, and where thou diest there will we die also." O the 
beauty and the grandeur and the strength that lie in a 
pure and unflinching devotion to a noble aim ! O the pos- 
sibilities within the scope of him who is girded " in God's 
own might! " 

In God's own might 
We gird us for the coming fight, 
And, strong in him whose cause is ours, 
In conflict with unholy powers 
We grasp the weapons lie has given — 
The light and truth and love of heaven. 



CHAPTER XVII. 

DESPERATE STRAITS — THE HOSTILE CHIBOQUE — LIVINGSTONE'S 
CALMNESS AND COURAGE SAVE THE PARTY — SEIZED WITH FEVER 
— THE MEN THREATEN MUTINY — A DECISIVE MOMENT — LIVING- 
STONE'S NERVE — THE HEARTS OF THE MAKOLOLO FAIL THEM — 
A GLOOMY SUNDAY — LIGHT THROUGH THE CLOUDS— u CHILDREN 
OF JESUS " — NEARING THE PORTUGUESE SETTLEMENTS — ACROSS 
THE QUANGO — HOSPITALITY OF THE PEOPLE — IN SIGHT OF THE 
SEA — REST AT LAST. 

ON reaching the Chiboque country Livingstone and 
his men were beset by the most desperate troubles 
and dangers they had yet encountered. Their supply of 
provisions was exhausted — they had not a pound of any 
thing on hand. There was no alternative but to kill one of 
the riding oxen. The poor creature had been reduced to 
mere skin and bones through the lack of proper nourishment. 
As was the custom, a quarter of this ox was sent to the 
chief of the nearest village, praying his hospitality. Of 
this act he at the time took no further notice than to greed- 
ily accept the beef and order the men who had brought it 
to go back whence they came. The next day was Sunday. 
As Livingstone was on his knees imploring succor from that 
Source that had never failed him, a message arrived from 
the chief. He now affected contempt for the quarter of beef, 
and demanded more valuable presents. Among these were 
itemized "a man, a whole ox, some powder, or a bundle of 
cloth. " As Livingstone had none of these last to give, and 
would have yielded his own life rather than have given the 
(246) 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 247 



first, he so informed the chief— at the same time adding, 
with his wonted courage, that he was ready for any thing 
that the chief might will. 

A few hours after the sending of this message a band of 
the Chiboque arrived. It was plain to see from their make- 
up that their intentions were not friendly. Livingstone, 
anticipating trouble, had in the meantime placed his men 
on the defensive. When the Chiboque saw the bold cour- 
age with which the men had prepared for the attack, they 
lost much of their self-assurance, and began to run hither 
and thither all out of order, brandishing their swords and 
axes aimlessly, and making all manner of high-sounding 
threats. Seeing that they were not going to fight, Living- 
stone took a seat upon a camp-stool with his double-barreled 
gun across his knees and quietly awaited events. Finally 
the Chiboque chief consented to come into the circle with 
some of his men and take a seat near Livingstone, for the 
purpose of talking matters over. The chief was still clam- 
orous for a man, an ox, or a gun. After considerable par- 
leying, Livingstone gave him a bunch of beads and a large 
handkerchief. But, instead of satisfying him, these things 
only made him greedier for others. Livingstone was deter- 
mined on giving him no more if he could help it, and 
equally as determined not to spill blood. It was a trying 
moment — perhaps the most trying through which he had 
been called to pass — and required that he should keep that 
splendid courage of his from wavering a hair's-breadth. At 
length, gaining something of an insight into the character 
of the man with whom he had to deal, and noting how 
ready his little band were to fight, the chief agreed to com- 
promise the matter with an ox. A poor, tired beast, that 
seemed unable to go much farther, was given to him on his 



248 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



promise to send them something to eat. All that ever came 
from him was a small basket of meal and a leg of the same 
ox that Livingstone had given him. But Livingstone was 
glad to be allowed to go on undisturbed, and did not stop to 
press his rights. 

New dangers and difficulties still arose. They were be- 
set on every side. Hostile bands of natives repeatedly 
threatened to attack them. For days they were without 
any food except a few berries and roots found in the forests. 
The terror of the situation was great indeed when Living- 
stone was stricken down with the fever, and some of his 
men, rendered desperate by hunger, strove to excite the 
others to mutiny. One Sunday, as he lay in his tent so 
sick that he could barely move his head from side to side, 
there was a dreadful din on the outside. It was a collision 
between those of his men who wanted to remain with him 
and those who seemed determined to desert and go back. 
He put his weary head through an opening in the tent and 
commanded silence. Loud, scornful laughs alone greeted 
him. Feeling that every thing would be lost — the weaker 
being compelled to succumb to the stronger — if some sort 
of authority was not exercised at once, he aroused himself 
to the emergency. It was a fearful strain upon his wasted 
strength, and called for every atom of will-power there 
was within him. Springing from his rug, he seized a pistol 
and darted from the tent. When thev caught sioht of his 
determined face the principal conspirators started off on a 
run. Pointing the pistol at them, he ordered them back. 
They came meekly, with crest-fallen countenances. He told 
them that he alone was master, and intended to be to the 
end of the journey. Then, noting how subdued they were, 
he began talking kindly to them. He assured them that 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 249 



in every thing he meant well by them; that he would lay 
down his life for them, if need be. In proof of this he 
begged them to recall the many times he had said, in answer 
to the demands of impudent chiefs for a man, that he would 
die rather than yield one of them up to slavery. He then 
called on them to witness his own suffering, which was 
greater than any of theirs. In conclusion he entreated 
them to have courage and faith, believing that the hard- 
ships and dangers they were enduring would soon end. for 
he had besought the Almighty One in their behalf, and he 
would hear the prayer. It is almost needless to say that Liv- 
ingstone's courage and his gen tie yet firm remonstrance effect- 
ually quelled all mutinous inclinations of his followers. 

Day after day the chiefs of the tribes became more ex- 
acting in their demands. Almost hourly a fight seemed 
imminent, and the men of the expedition had to be con- 
stantly on the defensive. At last even the hearts of the 
brave and faithfal Makololo failed them, and they began 
to weep, bemoaning their lot and begging most piteously to 
be carried back to their pleasant homes. This was tortur- 
ing to Livingstone — more trying than the threatened mu- 
tiny had been. He was sincerely attached to these men. 
They had followed him unmurmuringly through dan. 
and trials enough to have dismayed the stoutest hearts; 
they had obeyed without a question his every command ; 
they had even faced death with him time and again, un- 
flinchingly; but now they were completely broken down in 
body and spirit; fierce hunger gnawed at their vitals, and 
they were no loilger men, but children. Livingst 
heart bled when he thought of their Bufferings, and he 
asked himself over and over if he had done right in bring- 
ing them with him. All his powers of soothing and per- 



250 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



suasion utterly failed to revive their drooping spirits, and 
he went into his tent to pray — to seek aid from that One 
who alone could help him now. While he was addressing 
that Ear that never turns away from an earnest, heart-felt 
petition, his prayer seemed almost miraculously answered. 
One of his chief men came into his tent, and seeing him 
upon his knees, fell down beside him, saying: "We will 
never leave you, father. Do not be disheartened. Wher- 
ever you lead we will follow."' Nor did this man speak for 
himself alone. When Livingstone came to the tent-door 
he was met by the others with the same protestations. " We 
will never leave you," they said, "never mind where you 
may take us. We will trust you to the last. We are all 
your children ; we know no one but Sekeletu and you, and 
Ave would die for you." They were true to their word ever 
afterward. Not once did they show the least wish to de- 
sert him. A new spirit seemed to have entered into them — 
a new spirit of love and devotion. 

Soon after this episode the party were troubled by a 
chief who demanded valuable gifts. Livingstone simply 
answered by defying him; but no hostile demonstrations 
were made, and the travelers were allowed to pass unmo- 
lested. The Makololo men lavishly praised Livingstone's 
managing ability, and loudly asserted their belief in that 
higher and mightier Power upon whom he was constantly 
calling for aid. They said : " We do not fear now. We 
are your children and Jesus's." How quiet had Living- 
stone's God answered his passionate prayer! Here were 
the same downcast Makololo of the week before, now buoy- 
ant and hopeful, declaring themselves "children of Jesus," 
and as such fearing no danger, dreading no death! 

The love and devotion of Livingstone's men for him were 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 251 



proved not long after this, when the ox he was riding threw 
him into the river. More than twenty of them made a rush 
for him, and each one afterward regretted that he had not 
been the fortunate man to bring him to the shore. 

On the 24th of March the expedition approached the 
Portuguese territory. Livingstone had now to part with 
Shinte's shell — most reluctantly, as we may suppose — in 
order to j^rocure guides to lead him to the " white man's 
country," as the settlements beyond the Quango were called. 
Here, too, he dismissed the men Shinte and Katema had 
sent, which was according to the agreement he had entered 
into with the chiefs. Only himself and his trusted Makololo 
were left to finish the journey. As they drew nearer the 
Portuguese settlements they found ' ; the conditions and cir-. 
cu instances of travel growing more and more propitious." 
Here is one of Livingstone's graphic pictures of this part 
of their journey : "Every village swarms with children, 
who turn out to see the white man pass, and run along with 
strange cries and antics; some run up trees to get a good 
view; all are agile climbers throughout Loanda. At 
friendly villages they have scampered along-side our party 
for miles at a time. We usually made a little hedge around 
our sheds; crowds of women came to the entrance of it, 
with children on their backs, and long pipes in their mouths, 
gazing at us for hours. The men, rather than disturb them, 
crawled through a hole in the hedge; and it was common 
to hear a man, in running off, say to them : ' I am going t<> 
tell my mamma to come and see the white man's oxen!' ' 

On the 30th of March, when so weak from repeated at- 
tacks of the fever that he had to be led by his faithful Ma- 
kololo to keep him from falling, Livingstone reached a 
stretch of high ground overlooking a beautiful and fertile 



252 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



valley through which flowed a broad and glistening river. 
Here and there grew dense clumps of trees, while clusters 
of brilliant wild-flowers lent gladness and gayety to all the 
scene. Far away along the horizon stretched lofty mount- 
ain-ranges, their majestic fronts crowned with a deep -blue 
haze. As weak as he was, Livingstone could have shouted 
aloud for joy on recognizing that noble river as the Quango, 
and realizing that beyond it lay hospitable territory. But 
his troubles were not yet over. The Bashinge, a tribe on 
the side of the river where the party were encamped, made 
themselves so troublesome that Livingstone feared he would 
never get past them alive. The chiefs were most violent in 
their demands; but they might as well have demanded the 
moon, or any other unattainable thing, so utterly was it out 
of the power of the broken-down little band to grant the 
requests made. They were themselves in need of donations, 
and must have moved to compassion the hearts of any other 
people in the world. These savages were surely carried be- 
yond themselves by the greed of gain. Nearly every thing 
the Livingstone party had started with on this journey had 
been sacrificed. Only Sekeletu's tusks, Livingstone's in- 
struments, and the clothes worn by the men were left. The 
clothes were in such tatters that they could not even lay 
claim to the name of apparel. Made desperate by hunger 
and the tantalizing nearness of friendly succor, the explor- 
ers determined to march on through the hostile Bashinge, 
and attempt the passage of the river, even if they fell by 
the w 7 ay. 

Arrived at the Quango, a fierce-looking Bashinge chief 
presented himself with the request for " a man, an ox, or a 
gun," which had to be paid, he vowed, before they would 
be permitted to cross the river. It was a desperate moment. 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 263 

They knew not what to do, for the chief was accompanied 
by a band of men equally as fierce-looking as himself. 
Livingstone's heart sunk like lead in his bosom. Surely 
God had at last deserted them. But no! Even while his 
worn and haggard face turned toward the unsmiling heav- 
ens in the last entreaty of soul-born prayer, the help that 
had never yet failed them came. Just as they deemed 
every thing lost, a young half-caste Portuguese sergeant by 
the name of Cypriano de Abreu made his appearance, and 
compelled the chief to let Livingstone and his men cross 
the river. Cypriano himself ferried tfee party over; and 
their great joy, when a half-hour later they found them- 
selves on the other side of the river and in friendly terri- 
tory, can be imagined but not described. 

After crossing the Quango, Livingstone and his Makololo 
entered upon a vast prairie-like expanse covered with a 
dense growth of grass. In many places this grass was 
seven or eight feet high, and completely hid the travelers 
from view as they went onward. Three miles beyond the 
river they came to a cluster of neat, square houses, in front 
of which were groups of men dressed in military uniform. 
This proved to be a Portuguese barracks, over which their 
new-found friend, Cypriano, had command — it being an off- 
shoot of the larger post farther on. The young sergeant 
must have had a warm, sympathetic heart, which was 
greatly touched by their forlorn appearance, for he caused 
each one to be entertained as bountifully as the place would 
afford. Livingstone describes the first meal at the Portu- 
guese barracks as "a most sumptuous one," consisting oi' 
roasted maize, ground nuts, boiled manioc-roots, with gua- 
vas and honey for dessert. Poor fellow! he would have 
deemed any nourishing edible " sumptuous " alter his long 



254 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



fast and his former subsistence upon roots and berries. 
Livingstone's reference to an act he felt tempted to commit 
during the progress of the first meal is pathetic: " I sus- 
pect I appeared particularly ravenous to the other gentle- 
men around the table. Had they not been present I might 
have put something in my pocket to eat by night." They 
remained with Cypriano three or four days. He not only 
ransacked his garden to feed them, but slaughtered an ox, 
which caused the starving Makololo to shout aloud with joy. 
On parting with the young sergeant he gracefully crowned 
his other good deeds by presenting them with enough food 
to last several days. 

On the 13th of April, after three days of unusually hard 
traveling, Livingstone and his men arrived at Cassange, 
"the farthest inland station of the Portuguese in West 
Africa." The commandant of the barracks invited Liv- 
ingstone to supper and to spend the night with him, and 
gave his men directions to provide well for the Makololo. 
He supplemented this kindness in the morning by present- 
ing Livingstone with a suit of clothes and pressing him to 
remain several days, until he was somewhat recruited in 
health. Livingstone decided to remain, and during his en- 
tire stay at Cassange the commandant acted the part of a 
brother in all things. 

The tusks that had been given to Livingstone by Sekele- 
tu were sold at Cassange, and many needful articles bought. 
The Makololo could scarcely credit it when they learned the 
true value of the ivory. To them the price seemed fabu- 
lous. For instance, one of the tusks purchased two mus- 
kets, three small^barrels of gunpowder, a lot of beads, and 
English baize and calico sufficient to furnish clothing for 
the whole party. With another tusk Livingstone bought 






LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 255 



enough calico to pay their way thence to the coast, for as 
calico was the current money of the districts he well knew 
the need of it. The remaining two tusks were sold for 
money, which Livingstone laid aside to buy a horse for Se- 
keletu. 

As the party left Cassange — Livingstone much strength- 
ened by his rest, and the Makololo happy and radiant in 
their new clothes — the whole population turned out to see 
them off. Even the merchants left their stores and stood 
in groups along the way to bid them Godspeed. Living- 
stone appreciated this exhibition of interest and regard, 
and felt the deepest gratitude for the unvarying hospitality 
with which he had been treated by every one in Cassange. 
" We parted," says he, " with the feeling in my mind that 
I should never forget their disinterested kindness. May 
God remember them in their day of need." 

All was smooth marching now T . The dangers and terrors 
that had so long menaced their way were left far behind. 
All about them were friends, while among their stores was 
an abundant supply of articles with which to buy food and 
entertainment. As they came nearer to the sea the Mako- 
lolo began to get frightened; for now a distrust, the seeds 
of which had been sown by a party of mischief-making 
Mambari some distance back, was finding lodgment in their 
hearts — a distrust of Livingstone's real intention in carry- 
ing them to the coast. " He is taking you there to sell you 
for slaves," the Mambari had whispered in their ears; and 
although they did not heed it then, they thought of it now ; 
and the more they thought of it the more the tiny sihmIs 
swelled into life, until they burst into full-grown plants of 
suspicion. They now recalled all the terrible things they 
had seen and heard in the Balonda country, Livingstone 



256 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



observed their strange actions, and from a conversation he 
chanced to hear learned what ailed them. He called them 
together and. facing them squarely, said: "I see what you 
are driving at; and if you suspect me you may return, for 
I am as ignorant of Loanda as you are; but nothing will 
happen to you but what happens to myself. We have stood 
by each other hitherto, and will do so to the last." This 
manly and straightforward speech was not without its effect 
upon them. They grew heartily ashamed of their suspi- 
cions, and as memory carried them back to the many times 
Livingstone stood between them and death, or a fate worse 
than death, they fell upon their knees in front of him and 
begged his forgiveness. 

On first coming in sight of the broad and boundless sea, 
the Makololo were transfixed with wonder. It was like 
suddenly beholding a new world — or, rather, the end of the 
one in which they had all along lived; for they said of it 
afterward, when describing their feelings on that occasion: 
" We marched along with our father, believing that what 
the ancients had always told us was true — that the world 
has no end ; but all at once the world said to us: 'I am fin- 
ished ; there is no more of me.' " 

As they drew near the end of their journey grave doubts 
and fears began to seize Livingstone. How would he be 
received? What good, after all, would result from this 
undertaking? Would he find friends here to help him 
through with the great enterprise he had on foot, and for 
which he had sacrificed so much? or would it all fall back 
upon himself? Would there be one ear to listen, one hand 
to raise itself in unison with his, one heart to catch and 
retain the fire of his own enthusiasm, one other brain to 
help him plan toward the success of the end? Ah! surely, 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 257 



surely it must be. He had heard that out of a population 
of twelve thousand souls there was but one genuine En- 
glish gentleman in Loanda. This was Mr. Gabriel, the 
English commissioner for the suppression of the slave-trade. 
The very title sounded inviting, but would the gentleman 
himself be found equally so? How would he receive the 
"friendless, penniless, powerless" man who came entreating 
succor not only for himself, but for others? Would he prove 
to be a gentleman "possessed of good-nature, or one of those 
crusty mortals one would rather not meet at all?" These 
were the speculations that revolved through Livingstone's 
mind as he toiled down the steep declivity leading to the 
city of Loanda. He was indeed a most pitiful-looking ob- 
ject, notwithstanding the care and attention he had received 
from the kind-hearted Portuguese during the last few days. 
He was greatly emaciated ; he had a distressing cough ; his 
old malad/, the fever, was not yet cured; and all these 
bodily w'oes were increased by " dysentery of the most 
aggravated character." He had barely entered Mr. Ga- 
briel's porch w r hen "a good omen gladdened him." Beau- 
tiful flowers and shrubs of various kinds were blooming in 
pots on every side. "Ah! surely," thought Livingstone, 
"the man who loves flowers, and who takes the pains to cul- 
tivate them, must have a warm and sympathetic heart." 
Nor was he mistaken. The welcome afforded the worn and 
weary man was all that he could have desired. The first 
thing the warm-hearted Mr. Gabriel did was to put Living- 
stone to bed. " Never," says he, "shall I forget the luxu- 
riant pleasure I enjoyed in feeling myself again on a good 
English couch after six months' sleeping on the ground. 11 
He was soon asleep, and the good Mr. Gabriel, coming in 
shortly afterward, rejoiced greatly at the soundness of his 
17 




258 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



repose. At last he had come to the end of his journey, for a 
time at least — this steadfast " soldier of the cross ; " at last all 
the terrors and dangers of the way were over, and as a child 
upon its mother's breast he laid him down to his hard- 
earned rest in the house of his friends. All the "toils of 
the way" seemed as nothing, now that he had found sweet 
repose. O pilgrim, toiling toward that other and fairer city 
where there is rest forever, take heart, and remember 

That city to which you are going 

"Will more than your trials repay; 
For all the toils of the road will seem nothing 

When you get to the end of your way! 



CHAPTER XVIII. 



THE MYSTERY CLEARED — LIVINGSTONE'S DANGEROUS ILLNESS AND 

HIS RECOVERY — HE CALLS UPON THE BISHOP THE MAKOLOLO 

MAKE A FINE IMPRESSION — FREE PASSAGES TO ENGLAND ARE 

OFFERED LIVINGSTONE THE HEROIC STAND FOR DUTY HE 

TAKES HIS MEN ON SHIPBOARD — THEIR WONDER AT THE STRANGE 
SIGHTS — THE DEPARTURE FROM LOANDA — GENEROSITY OF THE 
MERCHANTS — THE RETURN THROUGH THE PORTUGUESE SETTLE- 
MENTS — INCIDENTS OF THE WAY — PITSANE'S LITTLE RUSE — AT 

katema's town — shinte's— HOME AGAIN. 



LIVINGSTONE reached Loanda on the 31st day of 
May, 1854 — just six months and twenty days after 
the time he started out. And now, what had been accom- 
plished, what discovered, through this journey? Many, 
many things. First of all, he had cleared up the mystery 
concerning South Central Africa. He had found it, as he 
had hoped, a country watered by numerous streams. He 
had also found that instead of being the vast and sandy 
desert many had pictured it — even the better informed of 
the geographers — it was a fertile and populous region, 
where grew all manner of vegetation. Best of all, he 
found fully one-half of the streams navigable, or in a con- 
dition to be rendered navigable at no very great outlay. 
The only drawbacks were the rapids and Shoals in some of 
the rivers, and the inhospitable and warlike spirit of many 
of the tribes along the banks. But what engineering skill 
might do for the one, could not the humanizing and civiliz- 
ing influence of the great plan of honest and remunerative 

commerce he had on foot do for the other? 

(259) 



260 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



The hardships and exposures to which Livingstone had 
been subjected produced a serious effect upon him, as was 
inevitable. He lay at the point of death for several week:: 
during which time he received unremitting care and atten- 
tion from his new-found friends at Loanda. But he did 
not die, although at one time even the physicians thought 
his case hopeless. God had too great a need on earth for 
his faithful servant to call him away from the work he had 
so grandly begun. In a month he was up and out. His 
first call was upon the bishop of the port. He took with 
him his faithful Makololo, all neatly dressed in their cotton 
stripes. The Portuguese prelate was greatly impressed by 
this meeting, and Livingstone went away hoping and believ- 
ing that the handful of tiny seed he had scattered behind 
him would eventually spring forth with the beauty and 
vigor of the mustard-bush, sheltering many in its branches. 

Although able to be up again, Livingstone looked so 
worn, so much run down,, that several commanders of En- 
glish vessels that touched at Loanda, during that time offered 
him free passages, and tried to induce him to return home 
at least for awhile, until he had partially recruited his 
health. The captain of Her Majesty's ship, the " Forerun- 
ner," was particularly urgent in his offer. But against them 
all — against the tempting prospect of soon rejoining his 
dearly beloved ones — he firmly held out. After all that he 
had suffered, not one word could have been said against the 
justness of his going. But Livingstone had passed his word 
to Sekeletu that unless hindered by Providence he would 
bring the Makololo safe to their homes again; and that 
promise he meant to keep at any cost. The risks, the 
dangers of travel — even the fearful ravages of the fever — 
would again be endured to redeem his pledge to the faithful 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 261 



Sekeletu. O what a man was this! — a man of whom it 
might well be said, " Behold in him the noblest work of 
God!" How many of us, thus tempted; tried, and allured, 
could turn our backs upon the flowery plains of ease and 
comfort, and, facing the stony front of toil and suffering, 
cry with an honest ring, " Thou first, O Duty ? " When we 
contemplate the life of this man, and find that the rugged 
grandeur and devotion of his manhood had never suffered 
by any contrast nor been impaired by any test, we feel that 
there is no sacrilege in our reverence for him. In thus 
honoring the man, we surely honor more the God who made 
him. 

While at Loanda Livingstone took his Makololo on board 
an English vessel that was lying in the harbor. He said 
to them as he pointed to the sailors : " These are all my 
countrymen, sent by our Queen for the purpose of putting 
down the trade of those who buy and sell black men." The 
Makololo replied, as they gazed about them w T ith fascina- 
tion: "Truly, dear father, they are just like you." Every 
thing they saw on the ship filled them with new wonder. 
The sailors were very kind to them, giving them a part of 
their dinner, and showing them all the interesting objects 
on board. They even asked the captain to let them fire off a 
cannon for the benefit of the Makololo. His consent was 
given at once. When the cannon was discharged the Mako- 
lolo were much startled by the report and the reverbera- 
tions, but after the smoke had cleared away they clapped 
their hands and showed their delight like little children. 
As the smoke from the great gun wreathed about them, 
Livingstone said: "That is what we put down the slave- 
trade with." They were much pleased to hear that, and 
approached the cannon and examined it more closely. But 



262 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



the ship itself excited their wonder and curiosity more than 
any thing else. They said to Livingstone: "You told us it 
was a boat. Why, it is not a boat at all! It is a town! 
And," looking up in astonishment at this moment to where 
some of the sailors were hanging among the shrouds, "what 
kind of a town is that where you must climb into it by 
ropes?" 

The Makololo became favorites with the people, especially 
w T ith the sailors, around Loanda. They were given steady 
work to do, and were well paid for it. Sometimes they 
helped load or unload vessels; again they collected fire- 
wood, which they sold to the towns-people. In this way 
they accumulated money to buy many articles of use and 
ornament to take with them to their country. But the 
time had now come for the plucky adventurers to turn their 
backs upon the hospitable shores of Loanda and their faces 
toward the dangers and privations that lay in the home- 
ward journey. The merchants of Loanda so fully ap- 
proved Livingstone's scheme of opening up the west coast 
to trade with Central Africa that they promised to aid 
him to their utmost ability should the undertaking ever as- 
sume definite shape. As a proof of their good intention 
and of their friendly interest in the natives, they provided 
handsomely for the little expedition about to start upon 
its return. They also, gave many presents to the Mako- 
lolo individually. So many gifts were sent to Sekeletu 
that for a time the party scarcely knew how to take care of 
them ; but at last they were all stored away for transporta- 
tion. Among these presents were a horse, saddle, and bridle, 
and a colonePs uniform, from the bishop. The merchants 
sent several bales of cloth and packages of beads, two don- 
keys, etc., besides a musket and a liberal supply of ammu- 



LIFE OF DAVD LIVINGSTONE. 263 



nition for' each of the Makololo. Mr. Gabriel presented 
each with a suit of fine cotton stripes and a red cap, while 
the bishop bestowed upon them a nice cotton blanket apiece. 
In addition, the merchants gave them orders to a number 
of friends along the route for supplies of every kind — one 
of these orders being for ten oxen. Among the trophies 
the Makololo carried back to exhibit to their people -were 
many very fine fowls. 

Thus equipped, they bade farewell to Loanda on the 20th 
of September, 1854. The first part of their route lay 
through the Portuguese settlements, and over much of the 
way they had come. They were again most kindly enter- 
tained by their old friends, the commandant and the ser- 
geant. They had not gone far when first one and then an- 
other of the men were seized with malarial fever. This ne- 
cessitated frequent stoppages, and it was not until the 20th 
of December that they reached the village of Pungo Adon- 
go, still in the Portuguese settlements. Here Livingstone 
was entertained by Colonel Pries, a wealthy planter ; and 
here too he learned the sorrowful news that the " Forerun- 
ner" — the ship by which he had sent numerous dispatches 
and papers to England, including a journal of the march 
to Loanda — had gone down at sea with every thing and 
nearly every soul on board. This was the very ship in 
which he would have sailed had he yielded to persuasion 
and embarked for England. With characteristic patience 
and determination, Livingstone began the task of reproduc- 
ing his dispatches while with Colonel Pries. The under- 
taking was truly herculean, especially for a man in his 
weakened condition; and it is remarkable that he accom- 
plished in a few weeks what it would doubtless have taken 
other men months to effect. Says one of his biographers: 



261 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



"The labor thus entailed must have been very great, for 
his ordinary letters covered sheets almost as large as a news- 
paper, raid his maps and dispatches were produced with ex- 
traordinary care." 

After emermno; from the eastern frontier of the Portu- 
guese settlements, Livingstone turned considerably south- 
ward of the route over which he had come on the previous 
journey. He did this in order to avoid many of the hos- 
tile tribes encountered before. On this course the tangled 
vines were so dense that the party had often to stop and cut 
them away before any progress could be made. Sometimes 
the bales carried by the donkeys and oxen would be jerked 
from their backs and thrown to the ground. 

The men of the country southward from the Portuguese 
settlements were great dandies, and seemed to care more for 
the ornamentation of their bodies and of their belongings 
than for any thing else. They wore their hair on their shoul- 
ders and dripping with oil. Their bodies were also saturated, 
and their clothes were thickly smeared with the unctuous 
compound. They went about playing upon all sorts of 
rudely devised musical instruments, like the love-siek 
troubadours of old. These instruments were all decorated 
with strips of gay-colored cloths. Their guns, when they 
carried any, bore the same style of decoration. The women 
were not far behind the men in affectation and vanity. 
Their especial hobby was the raising of dogs for lap pets, 
and it was no unusual thing to see one belle followed by a 
dozen of these canine favorites. But this picture lost its 
attractiveness when it was learned that many of the dogs 
were fattened for the owners to eat. 

At one point on the journey Livingstone came upon some 
Portuguese traders who were traveling with a gang of 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 265 



slaves. The situation was such that there was no alterna- 
tive but to travel awhile in their company. One of the 
slave-girls was very ill. It was all she could do to walk, but 
her cruel master urged her onward. Finally she dropped 
beside the path. Finding that it did no good to urge her 
further, now that she had fallen to the earth and seemed 
unable to rise, the hard-hearted man abandoned her to her 
fate. After they had gone some distance, Livingstone and 
his men made some excuse to return. Their object was to 
search for the poor girl, and to remain with her, either un- 
til she died or until she was able to go on to some settle- 
ment. Although they returned to the spot and searched 
diligently, beating all about in the bushes through the 
whole day, they could not find her.* She had doubtless be- 
come frightened at the cruel desertion, made a superhuman 
effort to rise to her feet, succeeded, wandered off bewildered 
into the woods, and was either lost or devoured by some 
wild beast. This incident served to increase Livingstone's 
determination to accomplish the great work before him. 

Their route led them again through a portion of the dan- 
gerous and inhospitable country along the Kasai River. 
Many times they were in desperate straits — death stared 
them in the face; and before they were barely out of the 
unfriendly region the Makololo had been well-nigh fleeced 
of every hard-earned article they had brought from the 
coast. An occurrence about this time showed the engineer- 
ing ability of some of Livingstone's men. Kawawa, one 
of the chiefs, sent them word that they could not cross the 
river unless they first gave him a man, an ox, a gun, or a 
robe. In order to give more force to his words, he dis- 
patched a body of men to guard the ferry. That night 
Pitsane, one of Livingstone's principal Makololo, whodur- 



266 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



ing the day had seen where several canoes were hidden 
under the overhanging bank, swam to them in the dark- 
ness, secured one of the largest, and brought it to his com- 
panions. The river was then crossed as noiselessly as 
possible, the men and the merchandise in the boat, and the 
horse, oxen, and donkeys swimming. After they had all 
reached the opposite shore, Pitsane returned with the canoe 
and restored it to its former place w.ithout detection. The 
next morning, when Kawawa's party saw Livingstone's 
men encamped on the other side of the river, they were 
very angry and much mystified. At first they could not 
imagine how the passage of the river had been made, espe- 
cially as the canoes remained in place; soon, however, the 
humorous Pitsane appeared and began making the move- 
ments of one swimming, and pointing toward the canoes. 
This provoked the Kawawa men, and they shouted across 
the river: "You were ugly, bad things to take our canoes 
without letting us know! " " O no, not at all," Pitsane re- 
turned. "All's fair in love and war, and we have done you 
no harm. We must return your compliment, however, by 
saying you are very good, and we thank you for the loan 
of your canoe." The Makololo, especially Pitsane, were 
much amused and delighted at the trick that had been 
played upon the surly old Kawawa and his people; but the 
conscientious Livingstone had taken care to place some 
beads and cloth, more than twice the amount of the ferri- 
age, in the boat Pitsane had carried back. As Kawawa 
and his people found the articles soon after, their mortifica- 
tion was lessened. 

Soon after leaving the Kasai, Livingstone began to suffer 
anew from the fever. He was therefore greatly rejoiced 
when he came in si^ht of his old friend Katema's town. 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 2G7 



Katema and all his people gave the travelers a hearty wel- 
come. . A cow was slain, and an abundance of meal and 
honey provided. Livingstone had not forgotten Katema's 
request. He- had brought him the long-coveted coat, and 
many other things — among them a cloak of red baize, a 
cotton robe, a quantity of beads, an iron spoon, and a tin 
pannikin filled with powder. But as great as had been 
Katema's joy in welcoming them, still greater was Shin- 
te's. Nyamoana was with him, having changed the site of 
her village nearer to Kabompo in consequence of the death 
of her husband. One thing, however, was wanting on this 
occasion, to lend spice and vigor to the proceedings, and 
that was the presence of the indomitable Manenko. She 
had intended to be present, but was deterred from coming 
by a burn on her foot. She sent Sambanza to represent 
her. 

Here Livingstone for the first time witnessed that novel 
proceeding called kasendi, which is the strongest ratifica- 
tion of the ties of friendship known to African custom. On 
this occasion Pitsane and Sambanza were the parties inter- 
ested. The ceremony is thus described : " The hands of the 
parties were joined, and small incisions, sufficient to cause 
bleeding, made in the hands, on the pits of the stomachs, 
the right cheeks, and the foreheads. Drops of blood were 
conveyed from the wounds of each on a stalk of grass and 
dipped in beer — the one drinking the beer mixed with the 
other's blood. During the drinking of the beer members 
of the party beat the ground with clubs, and muttered sen- 
tences by way of ratifying the treaty. This ceremony con- 
stitutes the parties engaged in it blood-relations, each being 
bound to warn the other of impending evil, even if it in- 
volves the disclosure of an intended attack on the tribe oi' 



268 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



the other by his own chief. After the ceremony they ex- 
changed presents, Pitsane getting an abundant supply of 
food, and Sambanza receiving Pitsane's suit of green baize, 
faced with red." 

Shinte insisted that Livingstone's party should remain 
with him several weeks. This they were glad to do, as they 
were much worn down. It was not until the 6th of July 
that they bade the chief good-by and started down the Lee- 
ba, some in canoes that Shinte had furnished, and the oth- 
ers leading the horse, oxen, and donkeys along the banks. 
Twenty days later the Barotse portion of the Makololo were 
at home. The scene on their entering the village is said 
to have been indescribable. Livingstone was really glad 
when it was all over, and they were seated in the kotla 
ready to give an account of their travels. For months 
they had been given up as lost, and their return was as 
from the grave. During their entire absence not one word 
had been heard from them; and as the time fixed for their 
return had long since elapsed, it was no wonder that they 
had been regarded as dead. 

Pitsane was the speaker in the kotla. He described with 
native eloquence every thing that had happened. When 
he told of the narrow escapes they had had from death, 
women cried aloud, and men started up with clinched fists, 
vowing vengeance against the dastardly chiefs. Living- 
stone at length quieted the troubled waters. At the very 
beginning of so promising an outlook for the future com- 
mercial intercourse between the various tribes, he did not 
desire that seeds of animosity and revenge should be sown. 
He drew the people gradually away from the contempla- 
tion of these things, and entreated them to join with him in 
returning thanks to God for his goodness in leading them 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE, 269 



out of every danger, and to beseech him for help in bring- 
ing to complete success the undertaking that now seemed 
to promise so well. They were heart and soul in the work 
with Livingstone. As savage and untutored as they were, 
they seemed to realize with wonderful vividness just what 
its accomplishment meant to them. When he remonstrated 
with them for their lavish display of hospitality on this oc- 
casion — the village having been ransacked from one end to 
the other to make a feast for the returned travelers — and 
expressed to them his regret at his inability, and that of his 
men, to give them any thing in return, they quickly stopped 
him. " It does not matter, good father/' they declared, look- 
ing upon him with reverence and gratitude. " You have 
opened a path for us, and now we shall have sleep [peace]." 

It was only too true that the Makololo had returned to 
their people almost as poor as when they left them. The 
many things purchased with their earnings at Loanda had 
been resigned one by one to satisfy the rapaciousness of the 
chiefs along the route, until now only th« striped clothes, 
red caps, a few trinkets, and the fowls were left. But this 
impoverished condition had no adverse effect upon their 
loyal people; indeed, it seemed to make them more loyal. 
They said to the returned Makololo: "Though you came 
back ten times poorer than you have, yet would you have 
gained by the journey." 

Livingstone's men, when dressed in their striped suits and 
red caps, presented a dashing " appearance " to eyes unused 
to such splendor of array. They tried to walk as they had 
seen the soldiers at the Portuguese military barracks walk 
when on duty, and spoke of themselves as their u father's 
braves " — meaning Livingstone. 

The most joyous demonstrations took place when Lin- 



270 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



yanti was reached. Sekeletu affectionately threw himself 
upon Livingstone's neck, and the brave Makololo could 
hardly loose themselves from the embraces of their families. 
The wonderful story of their adventures was once more re- 
lated, and again Livingstone had to play the part of an ad- 
vocate of peace. Sekeletu was proud of his horse, and of 
his donkeys, and of every thing that had been brought to 
him, but prouder than all of his flashing colonel's uniform, 
which made his eyes dance until they seemed ready to 
dance out of his head. Nothing would do but he must don 
the uniform on the spot. On Sunday, when he appeared 
in this array for the first time in public, so great was the 
sensation he created that for a long time Livingstone could 
not divert the attention of the people from Sekeletu to him- 
self in order to go on with his sermon. 

For many days the returned Makololo were the " heroes 
of the hour." Among the first things they asserted to their 
" stay-at-home brethren " was that they had seen the end 
of the world. The next moment, however, they w T ere con- 
siderably posed with this query: " Then, if you went to the 
end of the world, you reached Ma-Robert [Mrs. Living- 
stone]?" Considerably crest-fallen, they were obliged to ac- 
knowledge that they had not. " Then, rest assured," was 
the decisive answer, " you are mistaken. If you did not 
see Ma-Robert, you have not been to the end of the world 
after all, but only think you have." 

At Linvanti Livingstone found many letters and papers 
awaiting him. From these he learned that he had long 
since been given up for dead by the outside world. And 
no wonder! For two years he had disappeared as com- 
pletely as though the- earth had swallowed him up. For 
two years there had come no word, no sign to cheer the 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 271 

anxious hearts that awaited tidings from him — hearts that 
had at last, with one exception, lost all hope. Much of 
this painful suspense would have been averted had the 
" Forerunner " not gone down at sea with his letters and 
dispatchts. But doubtless by this time the second batch 
had reached England, and the anxiety in regard to him 
was at least partially allayed. Only his faithful wife, as 
has been intimated, refused to believe him dead. She clung 
to hope to the Inst, finding her daily solace and strength in 
the beautiful and comforting words of the ninety-first 
Psalm. Ah! surely that God who had always been her 
husband's refuge would keep him now "under the shadow 
of his wings." And he had indeed been thus kept, and de- 
livered at last from " the snare of the fowler, and from the 
noisome pestilence. 1 ' Livingstone's first act on getting back 
to Linyanti was to dispatch letters to his faithful and wait- 
ing wife. His heart was greatly cheered to find, besides 
the letters and papers awaiting him at Linyanti, many 
sadly needed supplies— with them a box from Kuruman, 
containing among other articles some clothing, medicines, 
lemons, lemon-juice, quince jam, tea, sugar, and coffee. This 
gift, which was Mrs. Moffat's, was accompanied by a most 
affectionate letter, so written that it showed plainly, in al- 
most every line, that she had little hopes of his ever living 
to read it. 

At last the herculean enterprise of marching to the west 
coast and back had been accomplished. It was no longer 
a matter for doubt and speculation, but an assured fact. 
Viewed in whatever direction one might look at it, it was 
truly a wonderful journey. Had Livingstone succeeded in 
performing this inu'ch with every facility at his command, 
with every necessary means of transportation at his hand. 



272 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



with a sufficiency of provisions for man and beast secured, 
then would it have been a most extraordinary feat. But 
when we recall the desperate straits to which he was put, 
the m eagerness, often complete barrenness, of all supplies, 
the fearful odds against which he had to battle, it seems 
truly amazing that he should ever have succeeded, even in 
part. One of the most remarkable points about the whole 
matter was that he had brought every one of his men back 
with him. Not a life had been sacrificed. 

But how had Livingstone himself come out of this jour- 
ney? Very much the worse for it, so far as bodily ills 
were concerned. He was not only worn down to mere skin 
and bones through the terrible ravages of the malarial fe- 
ver, but, from having to sleep so much on the damp, wet 
ground, often in little pools of water, he had contracted 
rheumatic fever in a most aggravated form. So severe 
were the attacks that they had seriously affected his hear- 
ing. Further than this, he had nearly lost the sight of one 
eye, by having it struck by the branch of a tree as he was 
riding through the forest. But in spirit Livingstone was 
as brave, as cheerful, as determined as ever. Not for these 
bodily ills — which would have given many men the excuse 
to turn their backs forever upon what still lay before — 
would he renounce the work he had begun, even for a time. 
He had determinately taken his stand, he had resolutely 
started in the path — from that time to this he had never 
swerved either to right or to left, nor did he intend to do 
it until God's own hand laid him helpless by the way, and 
placed upon his ardor the seal of eternal inactivity. 

Not the least of Livingstone's achievements on this jour- 
ney to the sea were the many geographical discoveries he 
had made, an account of each one of which he had found 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 273 



time to transmit to the Royal Geographical Society. Nor 
was this done in the least slipshod sort of a way — as might 
have been excusable amidst the many difficulties under 
which he labored — but with the utmost care and exactness. 
Indeed, so accurate was he, so painstaking, even in the 
midst of the most adverse surroundings, that the Society 
was loud in its praise. The unanimous verdict regarding him 
was that " no explorer on record had determined his path 
with the precision he had accomplished.'' As might be 
supposed, the Society was not slow in showing its apprecia- 
tion in a more substantial form. In May, 1855, a gold 
medal was awarded him — the highest honor in the Society's 
power to bestow 7 . This occasion is spoken of as one of 
"great interest." Many distinguished speakers reviewed 
the work of the now' famous missionary and explorer. All 
of them agreed in declaring that " the simplicity of his ar- 
rangements gave additional wonder to the results." The 
account of his recent march to the sea was contrasted with 
that of one that had just reached them of a Portuguese ex- 
pedition led by a Col. Monteiro from the east coast into the 
interior. In comparing the two, Lord Ellesmere, one of the 
speakers, pointedly remarked: " I advert to it to point out 
the contrast between the two. Col. Monteiro was the 
leader of a small army — some tw r enty Portuguese soldiers, 
and a hundred and twenty Caffres. The contrast is as 
great between such military array and the solitary grand- 
eur of the missionary's progress as it is between the actual 
achievement of the two — between the rough knowledge ob- 
tained by the Portuguese of some three hundred leagues of 
new country, and the scientific precision with which the 
unarmed and unassisted Englishman has left his mark on 
# $o many important stations of regions hitherto a blank." 
18 



CHAPTER XIX. 



THE DEPARTURE FOR THE EAST COAST — SEKELETU'S PROOF OF 
HIS DEVOTION — THE GRAVE OF THE CHIEF SEKOTE — THE 
GREAT VICTORIA FALLS — THE COUNTRY OF THE BATOKA — A 
DEGRADED TRIBE — THE GOSPEL OF PEACE — DANGERS AND DIF- 
FICULTIES — AT THE JUNCTION OF THE LOANGWA AND THE ZAM- 
BESI — HOSTILITY OF THE TRIBES— A PERILOUS POSITION THE 

REVENGEFUL CHIEF MPENDE— IN ANSWER TO PRAYER. 



ALLOWING himself barely two months' rest at Lin- 
yanti, Livingstone made ready to depart on the yet 
untried paths to the east coast. The journey to the west 
coast had not been altogether as satisfactory as he had 
hoped, and grave doubts were beginning to rise in his mind 
as to the possibility of soon opening up in this direction the 
route of commerce of which he had so long and so fondly 
dreamed. As elsewhere stated, the chief obstacles in the way 
were the many shoals and rapids in the rivers, and the hostile 
bands of natives along the banks. Then, much money would 
be needed — a great deal more, he feared, than he had at first 
supposed. Who would be found to give this money? Sure- 
ly, when he had brought them to see things as he now saw 
them, his own countrymen would do it. But this might 
take a long while, and the need of immediate action was 
pressing. It is true that the success of his undertaking 
had aroused in many of the natives a desire to establish 
trading relations with the distant tribes. Even now a few 
of the more intrepid of Sekeletu's men were engaged in or- 
ganizing a party to proceed to the Portuguese settlements 
(274) ** 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



with a supply of ivory. In the interim Livingstone de- 
termined on trying the east coast. Without doubt the 
waters of the Zambesi would reveal a more promising out- 
look. He had no trouble whatever in procuring volunteers 
to go with him on this second expedition. In fact, many 
more offered than it would have been either safe or wise to 
accept. They all said they were anxious to go, so that they 
could return and relate " strange, fine things," as did their 
brethren who had been to the west coast. Forty-five or 
fifty of the more promising of those who presented them- 
selves were selected. They left Linyanti on the third day 
of November, 1 855. Sekeletu, with two hundred additional 
men as an escort, accompanied them as far as Kalai on the 
Leambye River. The party were in the best of spirits, be- 
ing well provided for through the forethought and gener- 
osity of Sekeletu. 

On this east passage there were many routes opened up 
to him, but Livingstone, for reasons already made known, 
chose the one along the Zambesi ; although he well knew, 
from information he had received, that it was the most dif- 
ficult and dangerous of all. Some of the most hostile tribes 
in Central Africa lived in the vicinity of this river. 

They had not traveled far when a violent storm of thun- 
der, lightning, and rain overtook them. And now occurred 
an incident which proved, far more than many high-sound- 
ing words could have done, the genuineness of Sekeletu's 
devotion to Livingstone. In some way Livingstone and 
Sekeletu became separated from the rest of the men. They 
were soon wet to the skin, and having no extra clothing they 
were in a lamentable plight. But luckily Sekeletu had his 
blanket. When night came on they were still lost from 
the party. Knowing not what else to do, and being 



276 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTON!:. 



overcome with fatigue, they both lay down on Sekeletu's 
blanket at the foot of a tree. When Livingstone awoke in 
the night he was lying on one half of the blanket and cov- 
ered with the other half, while Sekeletu was taking the 
rain upon the wet ground. This circumstance affected 
Livingstone deeply. He says in allusion to Sekeletu's no- 
ble conduct: " I was much touched by this act of genuine 
kindness. If such men must perish by the advance of civ- 
ilization, as certain races of animals do before others, it is a 
pity. God grant that, ere this time comes, they may re- 
ceive that gospel that is a solace for the soul in death." 

On the island of Kalai, on which is situated the town of 
Kalai, where Sekeletu and his men afterward took leave of 
the expedition, they found the grave of Sekote, a Batoka 
chief who had been conquered by Sebituane. He had re- 
tired to this island, where he had died. The grave was in 
a remote part of the island. It was covered over with hu- 
man skulls and those of various animals, as was the custom 
of decorating the graves of chiefs in that country. At the 
head of the grave were heaped into a mound seventy large 
elephant tusks, surmounted by the head of a hippopotamus. 
Around him were buried many of his relatives, including 
one or two of his wives. Their graves were ornamented 
with tusks, and with the heads of crocodiles and hippopota- 
mi, but with no human skulls, this being alone a chief's 
distinction. 

On the 13th day of November Livingstone, with Seke- 
letu and a picked band of his men, entered canoes to visit 
the great falls on the Zambesi. He thought this must in- 
deed be a sight worth seeing, as the natives themselves were 
so impressed with it. Even Sebituane, in the short while 
they had been together, had mentioned the falls. One of 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 2m 



his questions had been: "Have you smoke that sounds in 
your country ?" On Livingstone's answering in the nega- 
tive, he continued: "'Well, then, when you go to my town, 
Linyanti, and sail some miles down the river, until you come 
to another river, and then go up that for a distance, you 
will there come to the great puffs of smoke that sound so 
loudly they will fill all your ears with a rush and roar, 
such as you never heard before." Of course Livingstone 
knew that he must mean a cataract of some kind ; and ever 
since then his curiosity had been aroused in regard to it. 
Now, for the last five or six days — in fact, ever since he 
had been in the country of the Batoka — he had continual- 
ly heard of the smoke that sounds. He afterward learned 
that the natives called this wonderful cataract the falls of 
Mosioatunya — the literal meaning of the word in their lan- 
guage being, " smoke does sound there." Before they had 
gone far in the canoes, the steadily increasing flow of the 
tide indicated to Livingstone that they were approaching 
the great falls. Awhile later they came to a place where 
the sweep of the waters onward was so rapid that the canoes 
had to be taken out and carried along the banks. When 
six miles away, Livingstone saw the tops of the mountains 
of spray that whirled off their spirit-like forms in whatever 
direction the wind was blowing. He learned that on a 
clear day these columns were visible to the naked eye for 
the distance of twenty miles or more. The rush and roar 
of the waters can also be heard for fully two miles away, 
while long before the traveler by land reaches this power- 
ful cataract he is made aware of its proximity by the trem- 
bling of the ground beneath his feet — this, of course, being 
caused by the immense volume and force of the falling 
waters. 



iliM 




(278) 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 279 



Livingstone was awed beyond the power of words to de- 
scribe as he came within full view of this magnificent freak 
of nature. Even its minor points were far beyond the wild- 
est play of his imagination. The men launched the canoes 
again some distance above the falls, and gradually and 
carefully made their way to an island in the center of the 
stream, the outward edge of which hung directly over the 
chasm of the falls. Livingstone found that this island di- 
vided one portion of the cataract from the other. Creep- 
ing to the verge, with feelings of the deepest awe, he peered 
down into the fearful abyss into which the waters so madly 
plunged. The stream at this point seemed to be some two 
thousand yards wide, and leaped downward over the sheer, 
precipitous face of a wall of rock to a depth which it was 
impossible to properly estimate at first sight. Later Liv- 
ingstone learned, through actual measurement, that the 
stream was something over eighteen hundred yards in 
width, and that the waters plunged a distance of full three 
hundred feet. What rendered this phenomenon all the 
more awe-inspiring was that the fissure into which the 
waters leaped was not more than eighty or eighty-five feet 
in width. Thus the force of the waters, being compressed 
into so small a compass, in their mighty reaction threw up- 
ward the vast columns of spray to the height of from two 
hundred and fifty feet to three hundred feet. At a distance 
this unbroken mass of seething water presents the appear- 
ance of clouds of drifted snow. In a " prolongation of the 
rocky chasm " at the eastern end of the falls " the tormented 
river" found an outlet. This prolongation continued for 
thirty miles or more, and as it was very zigzag in its course, 
the water was constantly thrown from left to right, ami 
from right back to left again. In consequence oi' this, it 



280 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



went roaring and boiling on its way, in many places send- 
ing up columns of spray to a considerable height. The 
Makololo told Livingstone that at a point farther east the 
fissure was deeper than it was at the falls. At this place 
the walls sloped so gradually that any one accustomed to 
it might go down in a sitting posture. A knowledge of this 
fact had once been taken advantage of by a party of the 
Batoka when pursued by the Makololo. But they had not 
been cautious enough: in attempting to go too fast, they 
soon lost control of themselves, and were hurled to pieces 
on the rocks below. 

The longer Livingstone gazed upon this mighty specta- 
cle of nature the more vividly he realized the majesty and 
grandeur of God, and the utter insignificance of his creat- 
ure, man. All about the falls the scene Avas remarkably 
picturesque and beautiful. Along the river-banks grew 
trees of magnificent foliage — among them the baobab, that 
mightiest monarch of the African forests ; the palmyra, with 
its long, graceful, and feathery leaves; the mohonou, in 
shape and foliage much like the lovely cedar of Lebanon ; 
and the tall, willowy motsouri. Here and there the broad 
surface of the river was dotted with miniature islands, each 
covered with a luxuriant mass of vegetation, amidst which 
w T ere many glowing blossoms spangling it like stars. As 
the sunlight fell full upon the cloud-like columns of leap- 
ing spray it crow T ned them with all the brilliant colors of 
the rainbow 7 . But the grandest sight was at night, when 
the falls "shone with a yellow, sulphurous haze, shadowed 
by clouds of pitchy blackness, as if belched from the crater 
of a burning mountain." It is no wonder that the natives 
looked upon this cataract in fear and awe; no w T onder that 
its grandeur and beauty so impressed them that they des- 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 28] 

ignated it as the abode of their god, Barimo. That was the 
highest tribute they could have paid to its " power and 
mystery." 

Livingstone at once communicated to the Royal Geo- 
graphical Society a knowledge of the discovery of these 
falls, and forwarded a description of them— at the same 
time conveying the intelligence that he had named them 
the " Victoria Falls," in honor of his sovereign. This news 
created a great stir throughout the world. The name of 
Livingstone is forever associated with the discovery, and it is 
considered by many as his most distinguished achievement. 

On the 20th of November Livingstone bade adieu to Se- 
keletu, and with his attendants moved northward through 
the country of the Batoka. This tribe was very singular 
in some things. It was a rigid custom that at the adoles- 
cent period every male and female must knock out the front 
teeth. This caused the lower teeth to grow long and bent. 
The upper lip sunk in, while the under, borne outward by 
the growing teeth, presented a most unsightly appearance. 
When they were asked their reason for this hideous custom 
they replied that they observed it to make themselves look 
more like the ox. Those who retained both rows of teeth, 
they said, resembled the zebra; and they had no regarcHbr 
the zebra, while, like many of the African tribes, they had 
the highest veneration for the ox. 

In going into the Batoka country Livingstone left the 
Zambesi for awhile, but after a considerable detour he re- 
turned to it several weeks later at a point farther eastward. 
The open plains over which he was now passing, covered 
with short, luxuriant grass, made traveling more of a pleas- 
ure than a hardship, and the little band pushed onward in 
the best of spirits. It was nothing like going to the west 



282 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



coast, where there had been great overflowed plains, tan- 
gled vines, and fallen trees to obstruct their way. To add 
to the pleasure, the district abounded in vegetable and an- 
imal life. There were all sorts of delicious fruits, which 
hung from the trees in tempting nearness, while immense 
herds of animals were constantly crossing their path. It 
was no trouble to bring down, at almost any time, a fine 
buffalo, an antelope, or an eland. Flesh-meat was there- 
fore in great abundance, and the Makololo's heart kept as 
merry as a song. They passed by the ruins of many vil- 
lages, the extent of which showed the great populousness of 
the Batoka tribes before so many of them had been exter- 
minated in the long and fierce war with Sebituane. At the 
river Dila they can e to a spot where Sebituane had lived 
for awhile after his conquest of the country. It was a most 
charming place, and the Makololo had never ceased to re- 
gret their departure from it. It was not only beautiful and 
fertile, but an exceedingly healthy region. Fekeletu had 
given Livingstone's head man, Sekwebu, instructions to 
point it out to Livingstone, as he thought perhaps the latter 
might find in it the long loc^ed-for spot at which to plant 
the mission station. Livingstone was entirely pleased with 
it, but he could not as yet decide upon any thing definite — 
at least not until that other great dream of his life had as- 
sumed a more realistic shape. Livingstone particularly 
admired the fine, large trees that grew everywhere about 
this favored spot, yielding fruits in rich abundance. Many 
of them were real monsters of the forest. He noticed a fig- 
tree that measured fifty feet in circumference. The heart 
had been burned out, and some one had recently used it as 
a lodging-place, for within it were the remains of a bed 
and a fire. 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 283 



Beyond the Dila the expedition met with a tribe that 
were inclined to be very hostile, especially when they rec- 
ognized Livingstone's men as Makololos. They had not 
forgotten the old enmity, nor forgiven the old injuries, and 
though overcome were not conquered. After their defeat 
by Sebituane they had retreated to this spot, where they 
had ever since remained sullen and vindictive. When the 
explorers came in sight these people brandished their bat- 
tle-axes and prepared to rush upon them. Nothing but 
Livingstone's cool courage saved their lives. With the ex- 
ception of this instance they found the Batoka quite friend- 
lv, many of them coming long distances to bring presents 
of fruit and maize. 

At the village of Monze Livingstone was much disgusted 
at the manner of salutation accorded him by some of the 
inhabitants. This was by throwing themselves upon the 
ground and rolling from side to side in the dirt, at the same 
time slapping their thighs vigorously. All the while they 
were grinning most horribly, and between the grins shout- 
ing out the oral welcome, " Kina Bomba!" As soon as 
they began these antics Livingstone cried out to them, 
"Stop! I don't want that I " But misunderstanding him, 
and misconstruing his words to mean approbation, they 
tumbled more wildly, slapped themselves more vigor- 
ously, and grinned more horribly than ever. In complete 
disgust Livingstone turned his back upon them, and waited 
for them to tire themselves out and to get up from the 
ground. He speaks of this tribe as the most thoroughly 
degraded of any he had met in Africa. They must indeed 
have been low in the scale of degradation to excite the loath- 
ing of one so tender and warm-hearted. And yet they were 
kind and peaceable creatures, and welcomed the travelers 



284 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



with the best their humble village would afford. Monze's 
people wore their hair all gathered up into a mass on top 
of their heads and woven into a cone, sometimes rising a 
foot or more in height. 

On the 18th of December the explorers reached the Ka- 
fue, which was the largest tributary of the Zambesi they 
had yet seen. Here they found the village of a chief by 
the name of Semalembuc. He treated them handsomely, 
giving them thirty baskets of meal and maize, and an 
abundance of ground-nuts. Livingstone remained among 
this people long enough to preach once or twice. The chief, 
as well as many of the people, seemed greatly impressed 
with Livingstone's words, especially the gospel of peace he 
proclaimed. Semalembue said to him : " Now, if what you 
tell us be indeed true, then can I both eat and sleep in peace 
after this, in the hope of the coming of that day when all 
shall be peace." 

While at this place Sekwebu pointed out the direction of 
a wonderful fountain, some two and a half days' journey 
distant, which emitted steam at one point and boiling water 
at another. " There,'' said he to Livingstone, " had Sebitu- 
ane been alive he w T ould have brought you to live with him. 
You would be on the bank of the river; and by taking ca- 
noes you would at once sail down to the Zambesi, and visit 
the w r hite people at the sea." 

As long as the travelers were in the domains of the tribes 
that owed allegiance to Sekeletu, they were most hospitably 
entertained — with the one exception noted. But they were 
now fast approaching the confines of this territory, and in 
consequence grave doubts and fears possessed them. For the 
last few weeks they had gradually veered around from their 
long detour, and were now again coming back toward the 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTON!:. 28-3 



Zambesi — although, as the record of their journey states, 
they had not at any time " departed very far from its chan- 
nel." Within a " few days of the New-year's-day of 1856 " 
they became aware that they must be very close to this 
" king of African rivers." Over their heads flew immense 
flocks of wild fowls — geese, ducks, herons, spoon-bills, and 
many others — and by these signs they knew that the feed- 
ing-grounds of the feathered tribes could not be far away. 
They now feasted royally, for Livingstone's gun brought 
down a number of the fattest of the geese and ducks. A 
day later they came to the banks of the noble river at a 
place where it was much broader and more rapid than they 
had yet seen it, except at the falls. 

At first the tribes along the course of the river from the 
point at which they had struck it were inclined to be very 
friendly. They were great agriculturists, and at almost 
every village men, women, and children were seen in the 
gardens, and all working industriously. As the soil was 
exceedingly fertile, the crops were luxuriant; but, what 
was better still, they seemed well tended, and not left to 
grow up in weeds, as in many other places. These people 
were known as the Maran, and some of their customs were 
quite peculiar. Among other things, they pierced the up- 
per lip and inserted into the opening a shell. The head 
man of the principal village presented Livingstone with a 
basin of rice, the first he had seen in a long time. 

The farther eastward they proceeded the more hostile 
grew the attitude of the various tribes. At one place they 
tried to spear one of the Makololo who had gone to bring 
water, and would doubtless have succeeded in doing so but 
for Livingstone's timely appearance. The enraged savages 
now rushed upon the brave missionary. lie was at once 



286 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



surrounded, while one of the band in a " sort of wild mania " 
brandished his battle-ax threateningly about Livingstone's 
head. All now seemed at an end for the intrepid man. 
But not so. Calmly facing his assailant, he looked him 
unflinchingly in the eye, and commanded him to put up 
his ax. Before that piercing glance the man slunk away 
as if caught in some petty act. The Makololo coming up 
at this moment, and seeing the danger of their fondly loved 
father, made ready to attack the men who surrounded him. 
But at a signal from him whom they had never yet dis- 
obeyed they restrained themselves — though it was plain to 
see that they longed to hurl themselves upon the band, and 
that each brave man there was willing to sacrifice his own 
life in an attempt to rescue him who had so often stood in 
the jaws of danger for them. Had they closed with the 
savages, as they started to do in the heat of the moment, 
all would indeed have been over — not only for Livingstone, 
but for themselves, since the hostile band outnumbered 
them five to one. As usual Livingstone's masterly courage 
and cool management saved both himself and his men. An 
hour later they parted from the people in real friendliness. 
Much to Livingstone's alarm he now found his ammuni- 
tion — that is, the balls and shot — running low. If it should 
come to a battle with the natives, it would certainly be bad 
for him and his men, unless they could in some way add to 
their store. At length he resorted to the expedient of melt- 
ing into balls two pewter plates and a piece of zinc he 
chanced to have. In addition he exhausted all the hand- 
kerchiefs of the party in buying spears for his men. Al- 
though danger constantly threatened them, and death often 
seemed but a question of a moment, their real troubles did 
not begin until they had reached the confluence of the Lo- 



LIFE OF DAVID .-LIVINGSTONE* 287 



angwa and the Zambesi. Here they seemed to have come 
to a climax, their lives more than once hanging by the slen- 
derest thread, which the least unguarded movement of theirs, 
to right or to left, would have snapped in twain in a twink- 
ling. It was a miracle that they should have escaped — a 
still greater source of wonder that not one of them fell by 
the hands of savage foe, and that not once was a battle nec- 
essary. What other man than Livingstone could have car- 
ried them through with such a record? On reaching this 
point Livingstone seems to have realized to its fullest ex- 
tent the danger that menaced them; but well he knew 
where to go for the strength and help needful to face it. 
We find the entry below in his journal, under the date of 
January 14th, 1856. Could that God to whom he poured 
forth the whole burden of his heart, of whom he so fervent- 
ly entreated succor in this hour of need, refuse to hear or 
to grant so pure and earnest a prayer? No wonder this 
trusting and intrepid soldier of the cross passed through 
every danger unscathed : 

"14th January, 1856. — At the confluence of the Loan- 
gwa and Zambesi. Thank God for his great mercies so 
far! How soon I may be called to stand before him, my 
righteous Judge, I know not. All hearts are in his hands, 
and merciful and gracious is the Lord our God. O Jesus, 
grant me resignation to thy will, and entire reliance on thy 
powerful hand. On thy word alone I lean. But wilt thou 
permit me to plead for Africa? The cause is thine. What 
an impulse will be given to the idea that Africa is not open 
if I perish now! See, O Lord, how the heathen rise up 
against me, as they did to thy Son ! I commit my way unto 
thee. I trust also in thee that thou wilt direct my steps. 
Thou givest wisdom liberally to all who ask thee — give it 



288 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



to me, my Father. My family is thine. They are in the 
best hands. O be gracious, and all our sins do thou blot 

out. 

A guilty, weak, and helpless worm, 

On thy kind arms I fall. 

Leave me not, forsake me not. I cast myself and all my 
cares down at thy feet. Thou knowest all I need, for time 
and for eternity/' 

They were now encamped near the village of a chief by 
the name of Mburuma, and momentarily expecting an at- 
tack. For two or three days Livingstone had been trying 
to get across the river, but the hostile natives not only re- 
fused to lend him the necessary canoes, but also to allow 
him to proceed at all. Livingstone soon learned that the 
cause of their fierce hostility lay in the fact that at one 
time, not many years before, this section had been invaded 
by an Italian slave-dealer, who had at first professed great 
friendship for them — even marrying the daughter of their 
chief — but who had at last repaid their trust by carrying 
off a number of the people into captivity. It is true that 
they had pursued, overtaken, and slain him, and thus had 
their revenge ; but ever since they had vowed deadly venge- 
ance against every one with a white skin. 

The next morning early, January 15th, at a little after 
sunrise, the natives began to collect about the camp. All 
of them were fully armed, and it was evident that their in- 
tentions were any thing but friendly. Livingstone at once 
addressed them. He frankly told them the object of his 
visit to their country, and that he was then on his way to 
the sea on an errand that would in the end prove of the 
greatest benefit to them. He next stated the object of his 
errand. They seemed to be favorably impressed by his 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 289 



words, and began to assume a less hostile attitude, though 
many of them from time to time cast upon him and his 
men most threatening and vindictive looks. 

Livingstone was still extremely anxious to cross to the 
other side of the river, but he did not know how to man- 
age it without precipitating an attack. lie came fearlessly 
to the point at last, and asked the natives for the loan of 
their canoes, at the same time displaying to their view some 
beads and copper ornaments. He again opened a conver- 
sation with them. He assured them that he had not come 
to make slaves of any of their people, but that his mission 
was directly opposed to a:l such horrible practices. He 
proposed to them that, in proof of his intention to carry 
none but his own people out of the country, the band of 
natives should stay and see them cross the river. Whether 
it was Livingstone's frank manner, or the boldness of his 
proposition, or the sight of the beads and ornaments, that 
had the desired effect, it was hard to tell. Perhaps it was 
all three. After considerable parleying, the majority sig- 
nified their willingness to receive the trinkets and to allow 
the strangers passage of the river. They then sent two 
men after the canoes. While they were gone, and his own 
men getting ready to embark, Livingstone amused the sav- 
ages by showing them his watch, pocket-compass, and burn- 
ing-glass. He was not so sure of these people yet, and did 
not know at what moment they might get him and his men 
into a trap, and then make an attack. So he stood with 
those searching eyes of his fixed upon them to the last, and 
back to back with his men while they were entering the 
canoes. Not until the last one-was in did he take his place. 
Even then he kept his eye upon the savages along the bank. 
As the canoes shot out into the stream Livingstone lifted 
10 



290 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



his hat, thanked the people for their kindness, wished them 
peace, and then bade them adieu. They seemed charmed 
with his manners, and stood staring after him in immova- 
ble fascination until the boats were safely over, which was 
doubtless the very thing Livingstone wished them to do. 

After crossing the river and proceeding some distance, 
Livingstone was surprised to come upon the ruins of a vil- 
lage where Europeans, doubtless Portuguese, had once lived. 
The houses, many of which had not entirely fallen into 
ruins, w T ere built of wood and stone, and though simply 
constructed were yet novel objects for this part of the coun- 
try. Among the ruins they found the remains of a stone 
church and a broken bell. The bell had the letters I. H. 
S. and a cross engraved upon it. 

Nine days later, on January 23d, they were again stopped 
by the hostile demonstrations of the people of a chief by the 
name of Mpende. This chief, having been badly treated by a 
party of Portuguese traders, had vowed that no white man 
should ever again cross his country. He was even at this 
time waging a determined war with the Portuguese along 
his frontier. The travelers were now in great straits. 
Their provisions had entirely given out, and several of the 
oxen, which farther back had been bitten by the deadly 
tsetse fly, w 7 ere either dead or in a dying condition. Be- 
sides, they were in the territory of one of the most blood- 
thirsty of all the Zambesi chiefs. But they bravely faced 
the situation, putting their trust in that God who had never 
turned a deaf ear to their cries for aid. As they approached 
Mpende's village, Livingstone — although his mind was 
weighed down by fears and anxieties — could not help en- 
joying the extreme beauty of the scene. The village stood 
in the midst of a green valley, surrounded on all sides by 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 291 



forests of stately trees, some spangled with blossoms and 
others gemmed with fruits. In the background rose a 
lofty, conical-shaped hill, about the summit of which the 
fleecy clouds hung like snow-white curtains. The expedi- 
tion marched bravely up toward these wooded heights, and 
near the bank of a little stream that sung its happy way 
through the smiling valley pitched their tent. They had 
no sooner done so than a crowd of the natives came rushing 
out to them, making all manner of hostile demonstrations. 
Livingstone and his men were in a sad plight. Their 
clothes were worn into rags, and they had not a pound of 
provisions of any kind. Most distressing yet, they had not 
tasted food for nearly three days — their only means of sub- 
sistence being a few roots they had obtained in the forest. 
One thing that led them to face the dangers of Mpende's 
village, instead of trying to skirt around it, was that they 
hoped through some means to procure food. But with all 
his diplomatic skill, Livingstone failed to make their needs 
known — or, if he did, there was no promising response from 
the people, who still circled about the new-comers, uttering 
horrid cries and brandishing strange-looking weapons. 
They ceased after awhile, and withdrew to the village evi- 
dently to prepare for an attack. In the meantime, the 
pangs of hunger were growing unbearable. Aware that 
his men could not fight in this condition, Livingstone was 
reduced to the necessity of slaughtering one of the oxen 
that had not shown the worst effects of the tsetse bites. The 
men were much cheered by their hearty meal. As they sat 
around the camp-fire, on the alert for an attack at any 
moment, they said to Livingstone: "You have seen us fight 
elephants, good father, and thought us very brave, but you 
do not know yet what we can do with men. Just wail, and 



292 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



see, and have no fears." Livingstone replied that he hoped 
that they might all get away without any fight; that he was 
averse to shedding men's blood, even from necessity. That 
night he prayed with all the fervor of his trusting heart: 
"To thee, O God, we look. And O thou who wast the 
Man of sorrows for the sake of poor vile sinners, and didst 
not disdain the thief's petition, remember me and thy cause 
in Africa! Soul and body, my family, and thy cause, I 
commit all to thee. Hear, Lord, for Jesus' sake! " 

The next morning at sunrise a body of Mpende's people 
appeared again. They came nearer the encampment this 
time, uttering the same horrid cries, and brandishing some 
red substance instead of the strange-looking weapons. They 
finally lighted a fire, threw a lot of charms into it, and 
then departed, giving vent to a series of cries and screams 
more hideous than ever. This they probably did in the be- 
lief that it would not only frighten their enemies, but render 
them powerless to resist an attack. Livingstone wondered 
why they made no more active signs of battle, but afterward 
learned that they were awaiting the return of their chief, 
who was some distance away engaged in warfare with his 
deadly enemies, the Portuguese. 

Livingstone was now undecided whether to go on and 
risk cutting his way through this warlike tribe, or to stay 
and await events. When he remembered that he was at 
their mercy about getting over the river, he decided to stay 
where he was until the chief's return, although it might be 
the most dangerous thing he could do. In a few days the 
chief returned. Heat once dispatched messengers to Liv- 
ingstone, asking him his object in coming into his country. 
Livingstone sent a politely worded request for a personal 
interview. This Mpende very haughtily refused to grant. 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 29:> 



Later he dispatched in his place his head man and another 
one of his chief men. Livingstone found them very sensi- 
ble old men, though they plainly shared Mpende's hatred 
of the whites. As they approached they asked Livingstone 
the question : " Who are you ? " " I am a Lekoa, an En- 
glishman," he replied. They shook their heads, as if great- 
ly mystified, while one of them said: "We do not know 
that tribe. Is it a very good tribe?" " It is a very good 
tribe indeed," returned Livingstone proudly. " Well, we 
are glad to hear that. We thought you of the Mozunga 
[Portuguese], with whom we have been fighting. Our chief 
hates the Mozunga, and so do we. We did not know there 
were any other whites but them." "I will prove to you 
that I am whiter than they, and therefore not of their 
tribe," said Livingstone, uncovering his bosom and arms. 
" Did you ever see skin so white as that?" " No, we never 
did." " Nor hair like this? " " Truly we have not. The 
Mozunga, though they are white, have neither that hair 
nor that skin. O now we have it! You are of that tribe 
of whom we have sometimes heard but never yet seen — the 
tribe that live over the big water, and who are said to love 
the black man." " I am of that tribe," returned Living- 
stone; " and if you will let me I will prove to you that I 
mean you and your people only good, and that I am bound 
now on a journey in your interest." 

The two men went back to their chief, filled with won- 
der and delight at what they had seen and heard. Mpende 
was greatly impressed, and after a long consultation with 
his councilors was induced to believe Livingstone's story, 
and to permit him to go on undisturbed; and not only this, 
but to agree to furnish the party with canoes in which to 
cross the river. 



294 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



" To thee, O God, we look! " had been the burden of that 
humble, fervent, impassioned prayer, and how graciously 
had it been heard and answered! Well and fittingly has 
one of the biographers of this truly great man remarked : 
" In the entire records of Christian heroism there are few r 
more remarkable occasions of the triumph of the spirit of 
holy trust than the one here recorded/' 



CHAPTER XX. 



GRADUALLY INCREASING SIGNS OF CIVILIZATION — SAND-FILLED 
RIVERS — AT MONINA'S VILLAGE — DEATH OF POOR MOXAH1N — 
WORN DOWN WITH FATIGUE — A CIVILIZED BREAKFAST— AT 
TETE — GENEROSITY AND HOSPITALITY OF MAJOR SICARD — ILL- 
NESS — ARRIVAL AT KILIMANE — GREETED WITH SAD INTELLI- 
gence—insanity and death of sekwebu — the departure 
for home— arrival in england— enthusiastic reception 
— Livingstone's extreme modesty — the quiet sojourn at 
newstead abbey — literary labors. 



EARLY in February, Livingstone and his followers, 
making their way down the Zambesi, under many 
difficulties and dangers, began to observe increasing signs 
of civilization. Meeting a party of traders, Livingstone 
bartered two elephant tusks for some calico marked " Law- 
rence Mills, Lowell, Mass." His men had been reduced to 
a state of complete nudity, and he was now enabled to make 
them more presentable. The progress of the expedition 
was both difficult and slow, owing to the many sand-filled 
streams they had to ford. The sand had been washed 
down into these streams by the heavy rains, and formed 
into great beds. Underneath these, however, there was a 
firm stratum of clay. Livingstone says that often during 
the dry season the water would all disappear, when these 
vast sand deposits would remain like miniature mountain- 
heaps glittering in the sun's rays. But, strange to say, it' 
one would take the trouble to dig a few feet beneath them 
he would there find tiny streams of water " percolating over 

(296) 



296 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



the clayey bottom." This, Livingstone says, " is the phe- 
nomenon which is dignified by the name of ' rivers flowing 
under-ground.'" He gives this account of his difficulties 
in trying to ford one of these rivers, the Zingesi: "I felt 
thousands of particles of coarse sand striking my legs, and 
the slight disturbance of our footsteps caused deep holes to 
be made in the bed. The water dug out the sand beneath 
our feet in a second or two, and we were all sinking by that 
means so deep that we were glad to relinquish the attempt 
to ford it before we got halfway over. The man who pre- 
ceded me was only thigh-deep, but the disturbance caused 
by his feet made it breast-deep for me. The shower of par- 
ticles and gravel which struck against my legs gave me the 
idea that the amount of matter removed by every freshet 
must be very great." 

At the village of a chief by the name of Monina the peo- 
ple were much displeased because Livingstone had not 
brought them a great many presents. He was utterly 
unable to give them even a handful of beads or a yard of 
cloth, as his store was thoroughly exhausted. At first they 
were disposed to act very ugly about it, as they thought he 
was " putting on." A great war-dance was gotten up, in 
order to frighten the travelers into giving presents. " They 
beat their drums furiously," says Livingstone, " and occa- 
sionally fired a gun. As this sort of dance is never gotten 
up unless there is an intention to attack, my men expected 
an assault. We sat and looked at them for some time, and 
then, as it became dark, we lay down, all ready to give them 
a warm reception. But an hour or two after dark, the 
dance ceased, and as we saw no one approaching us, we 
went to sleep." 

At this place Livingstone had the misfortune to lose one 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 297 



of his men, the second he had lost since entering upon this 
journey — the first having died of fever and been buried by 
the way. This last was one of his chief men, and the cir- 
cumstances of his death were alike sad and peculiar. Dur- 
ing the night, just after the din of the horrid war-dance had 
ceased, Monahin, who had been complaining of his head for 
several days, was seen to get up and look toward the vil- 
lage. He did not seem to be more than half awake. " Do 
you not hear what those people are saying?" he asked hur- 
riedly of the man who was sleeping next to him, and who 
had been awakened by his movements. " Go and listen." 
He then walked off in an opposite direction, and was never 
seen again, although diligent search was made for him for 
three days. It is probable that a sudden fit of insanity 
seized the poor fellow, during which he walked off into the 
woods, and was devoured by lions, as that region was full 
of them. Monahin's death grieved Livingstone deeply, 
and he could scarcely leave the place, although further 
search seemed useless. 

Livingstone here describes some of the customs and pe- 
culiarities of the tribes along the Zambesi: "At the village 
of Nyakoba the person appointed to be our guide came and 
bargained that his services should be rewarded by a hoc. 
I had no objection to give it, and showed him the article. 
He was delighted with it, and went off to show it to his wife. 
He soon afterward returned, and said that though lie was 
perfectly willing to go his wife would not let him. I said, 
'Then bring back the hoe;' but he replied, 'I want it/ 
'Well, go with us, and you shall have it.' 'Rut my wile 
won't let me/ I remark eH to my men, ' Did you ever bear 
such a fool?' They answered : '0 that is the custom of 
these parts; the wives are the masters.' When a youug 



298 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



man takes a liking for a girl of another village, and the 
parents have no objection to the match, he is obliged to 
come and live at their village. He has to perform certain 
services for the mother-in-law, such as keeping her well 
supplied with fire-wood ; and when he comes into her pres- 
ence he is obliged to sit with his knees in a bent position, 
as putting out his feet toward the old lady would give her 
great offense. If he becomes tired of living in this state of 
vassalage, and wishes to return to his own family, he is obliged 
to leave all his children behind ; they belong to the wife." 

On the evening of March 2d Livingstone found himself 
within eight miles of the Portuguese settlement of Tete. But 
he was so fatigued, so utterly worn down by the trying ex- 
periences of the last days of his journey, that he could not 
proceed a mile farther. Indeed, he had at this point liter- 
ally dropped into the arms of his men, and there the camp 
for the night had to be made, even though it was in a most 
inconvenient and uninviting spot. He, however, sent for- 
ward to the commandant of the post some recommendatory 
letters he had received while at Loanda. These letters 
were altogether unnecessary, as news of his coming had 
reached the east coast months before. Besides, the whole 
civilized world had by this time heard of the great mission- 
ary and his almost phenomenal work in the heart of Africa. 
Further than this, the Portuguese authorities along the 
rcute had all been notified of Livingstone's proposed march 
to the east coast through a no less distinguished source than 
official dispatches from England. 

It is no wonder, then, that the commandant at Tete, Ma- 
jor Sicard, should have been much exercised over the re- 
ceipt of the letter by the hand of Livingstone's special mes- 
senger, together with the information that the now famous 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 290 

Dr. Livingstone was within two hours' journey of his post 
and awaiting his courtesy. Preparations were at once en- 
tered upon for a reception befitting so distinguished a per- 
sonage, while steps were taken to send immediate relief 
to the courageous explorer who had been reduced to such 
desperate straits during the last few days. As early as two 
o'clock the next morning two officers and a company of 
soldiers, detailed by Major Sicard, appeared at the camp 
with a supply of provisions. As Livingstone and his men 
had been for many days past subsisting entirely upon roots 
and honey, we may easily imagine the joy with which the 
half-starved men once more partook of a civilized meal. 
Livingstone says of it: "The pleasure experienced in par- 
taking of that breakfast was only equaled by the enjoyment 
of Mr. GabriePs bed when I arrived at Loanda." In fact, 
so refreshing did Livingstone find it that after eating he 
walked the eight miles to Tete without "the least signs of 
weariness/' as he himself tells us; although the way was so 
rough that one of the officers remarked, " This is enough 
to tear a man's life out." At Tete Livingstone was warmly 
received by the hospitable and generous Major Sicard. He 
reclothed Livingstone and his men in the best the place 
could afford, and secured for them every attention. 

Livingstone's principal point of destination, as we know, 
was Quilimane, on the east coast and at the mouth of the 
Zambesi. When he arrived at Tete he learned that it was 
the unhealthy season at Quilimane. He was therefore per- 
suaded by Major Sicard to remain at Tete as his guest for 
a month, by which time it would doubtless be Bafe for him 
to continue his journey. Livingstone accepted this kind 
offer, which also included his men who had been provided 
with comfortable huts by the Major's direction. 



300 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



Having waited the month at Tete, Livingstone was about 
to start down the river, when he was seized with fever. 
This was on the 4th of April. By the 22d he had so far 
recovered as to undertake the journey again. Selecting 
sixteen of his best men. he set off in canoes provided by the 
commandant. The rest of his Makololos he left with Ma- 
jor Sicard, who generously offered to give each one of them 
a piece of land on which he could raise something for him- 
self. He also granted them permission to hunt elephants, 
the money obtained from the sale of the tusks and dried 
meat to be spent for articles of use and ornament for Seke- 
letu and their people. Livingstone's principal reason for 
leaving so many of his men behind was that a most dis- 
tressing famine was prevailing at Quilimane. Thousands, 
chiefly slaves, had perished within the last few weeks. It 
was certainly a great reproach to the Portuguese govern- 
ment — or rather to its African administrators — that so 
many helpless creatures should have j>erished at this place 
for want of food, when there was an abundance of it at the 
other stations up the river and it only being necessary to 
float it down the river. 

Major Sicard sent one of his best officers, Lieutenant Mu- 
randi, to escort Livingstone and his party to the coast, so 
that they were relieved of many of the difficulties of the 
route. Their only unpleasant experience was in having to 
walk fifteen miles under the blazing sun along a portion of 
the delta of the Zambesi that was not navigable. From 
this exposure to the sun, and the fatigue of walking, Liv- 
ingstone had a second attack of fever, and he suffered great- 
ly on his arrival at Senna a day or two later. 

The Zambesi flows into the sea by a number of mouths, 
which form a considerable delta. The party chose the most 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



301 



northern of these mouths, which led them direct to Quili- 
mane. This point they reached May 20th, 1856, just a few- 
days within four years after the time when Livingstone set 
out from Cape Town on his now accomplished journey from 
sea to sea. We have seen by what trials, dangers, and pri- 
vations that journey was attended to its close. We know, 
too, how fearlessly Livingstone stood at his post under the 
most trying circumstances. Hunger, cold, exhausting heat, 
and toil, dangers innumerable, even death itself, he had 
been required to face; yet, having a steadfast faith in the 
rulings of that mighty Power beneath the shadow of whose 
wings he calmly rested, this "man of destiny" valiantly 
battled with each in turn. 

From Quilimane Livingstone at once communicated with 
the Royal Geographical Society regarding his journey to 
the east coast. He had found it every way more promis- 
ing than his visit to the west coast. The beauty and rich- 
ness of some parts of the country he declared could not be 
surpassed. Much of this region was densely populated, too, 
especially that along the basin of the Zambesi. True, a 
large portion of the inhabitants were hostile, yet he be- 
lieved that with due caution and right treatment even this 
serious drawback could be overcome. The antagonistic 
spirit of the tribes mostly grew out of the ill-usage they had 
received at the hands of the half-caste traders. As Liv- 
ingstone had found it elsewmere, so he had found it here — 
that wherever the noxious roots of slavery had penetrated 
there they had grown and expanded into a moral upas-tree, 
tainting all the atmosphere with its infectious poison. But 
what might not the powerful and life-giving presence oi' 
Christian missions do toward the dissipation of this fateful 
influence? How many vigorous strokes toward its uttei 



302 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



annihilation might not one determined arm give to the 
trunk of this deadly tree? 

Among the discoveries Livingstone had made on this jour- 
ney two things that pleased him most were: first, that not 
a great many miles directly eastward from the country of 
the Makololo he had found a healthy and elevated belt of 
land, about " two degrees of longitude broad and of un- 
known length," which offered most advantageous induce- 
ments for the planting of mission stations; and second, that 
in the Zambesi he had discovered, as he had hoped, an al- 
most unbroken route to the sea. At last he had accom- 
plished his part of this unparalleled undertaking: it now 
remained for his country and the missionary society he rep- 
resented to do the rest. But would they do it? He could 
only communicate with each and aw ait the development of 
events. 

Soon after reaching Quilimane Livingstone had to part 
with his faithful Makololos. One of the most trying things 
he had ever been called upon to do was to say good-by to 
them. He would have liked to put it off a little longer, 
but the time had come for them to go back to Tete, where 
they were to await his return from England, he having 
made all the necessary arrangements with Major Sicard. 
The grief of the poor fellows when the time of parting had 
come w 7 as most touching. They declared that they could 
not and would not leave their good father, Livingstone; that 
wherever he went there were they going too. Again they 
besought him not to leave them, but to return with them. 
Livingstone's distress w r as great, but it was best for their 
sake as well as his own that he should be firm with them. 
So he bade them act like men, as Makololo warriors, and 
as his children and Sekeletu's. This touched the right 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 303 



chord ; and on his promising to return soon if God spared his 
life, and to bring Ma-Robert with him, they bravely turned 
their faces in the direction of Tete. 

But Livingstone did not send all of his men back: he 
kept Sekwebu, intending to take him on to England. Liv- 
ingstone's idea was that on his return Sekwebu might be 
able to tell Sekeletu and his people just what kind of a 
country England w T as, thereby increasing the confidence 
and trust of the Makololo. Perhaps, too, he th ought the 
presence of the black man among his white brothers might 
be to them a more eloquent plea for the speedy adjustment 
of the wrongs of his people. 

At Quilimane Livingstone learned that the captain, lieu- 
tenant, and five men of Her Majesty's ship " Dart " had 
been drowned off the bar in corning to take him aboard. 
Of this melancholy event Livingstone says: "I never felt 
more poignant sorrow. It seemed as if it would have been 
easier for me to have died for them than that they should 
all have been cut off from the joys of life, in generous- 
ly attempting to render me a service/' One of his first 
acts on returning to England was to write a letter to the 
Admiralty asking a pension for the widow of one of these 
gallant men. He had never seen her, he said, but he had 
been " the unconscious cause of her husband's death, and 
all the joy he felt in crossing the continent was embittered 
when the news of the sad catastrophe reached him." 

Livingstone remained at Quilimane six weeks. At the 
end of that time Her Majesty's brig "Frolic" was sent to 
convey him to the island of Mauritius, east from Madagas- 
car, and whence after a sojourn for rest and recreation he 
was to sail for England. There was a heavy sea rolling as 
Livingstone and Sekwebu entered the small-boat that bad 



304 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



been sent to convey them to where the " Frolic" lay at an- 
chor. This frightened Sekwebu very much. At one mo- 
ment he seemed on the point of leaping into the water. It 
was the first time he had seen such a racing sheet of water, 
and his terror was deep-set. However, when the ship was 
boarded, and the kind-hearted sailors did all they could to 
accustom him to the new situation, he became more com- 
posed in his mind, though there was still an uneasy look in 
his eyes. But poor Sekwebu's terror again broke forth — 
indeed, seemed to reach a climax — when the "Frolic" lay 
anchored at the entrance to the harbor of Mauritius, and 
the steam-launch came out to tow r the ship in. The mo- 
ment " the uncouth, panting monster" drew near, with 
the dense volumes of smoke issuing from her stacks, and 
puffing and growling like some tormented creature, Sekwe- 
bu gave one shriek and jumped from the brig into a small 
row-boat that lay along-side. When Livingstone followed 
him and endeavored to persuade him to return, he broke 
forth: " Go away, good father, and leave me to die alone! 
It is enough that I alone die. You must not perish. If 
you do not go, I shall throw myself into the water." Liv- 
ingstone saw that the poor fellow's terror had culminated 
in madness, and he scarcely knew what course to pursue. 
" Remember, Sekwebu," he said persuasively, " that we are 
going to see Ma-Robert. If you destroy yourself, you will 
not see her." This had an instant and a most soothing ef- 
fect upon him. " O yes! " he cried, raising himself sudden- 
ly, "to see Ma-Robert! But where is she? and where is 
Robert [Livingstone's little son]? " In a short time he al- 
lowed himself to be taken back to the vessel. In the even- 
ing, however, a fresh fit of insanity came on. He tried to 
spear one of the men, and ran about the vessel foaming like 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 305 



a maddened beast, and before any one could prevent it he 
leaped into the sea. Here he deliberately dragged himself 
down, " hand under hand," by means of the chain cable, and 
was drowned. His body was never recovered. 

On the 9th of December, 1856, Livingstone landed in 
London, and the next morning the Times announced that 
Dr. Livingstone, the "distinguished African missionary and 
traveler," was once more among his countrymen. Three 
days later, at a most enthusiastic meeting of the Royal Ge- 
ographical Society, the president, Sir Roderick Murchison, 
reminded the members that " they were met together for 
the purpose of welcoming Dr. Livingstone on his return 
home from South Africa, after an absence of sixteen years, 
during which, while endeavoring to spread the blessings of 
Christianity through lands never before trodden by the foot 
of any European, he had made geographical discoveries of 
incalculable importance. In all his various journeys Dr. 
Livingstone had traveled over no less than eleven thousand 
miles of African territory; and had come back to England 
as the pioneer of sound and useful knowledge." A few even- 
ings after, a similarly warm reception was accorded him 
by his old employers, the London Missionary Society. In- 
deed, so many honors were now heaped upon him that it 
would be impossible to record even a small part of them 
here. He was everywhere treated with the greatest consid- 
eration. His zeal, his courage, above all the story of his 
wonderful achievements in Africa, were the theme of ev- 
ery tongue. Wherever he went people struggled to get a 
glimpse of him, and the mere announcement that he would 
be present at a public gathering was sufficient to crowd the 
building to overflowing. Even the Queen had sent for him 
to tender her congratulations. 



306 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



All this was surely enough to turn the head of any mortal 
man; but it had no such effect upon Livingstone. He re- 
mained the same modest, unassuming man that we have 
seen laud at Cape Town when his name was scarcely known 
outside of his own native village. Modesty was one of the 
most attractive elements of Livingstone's character; it was 
so thoroughly a part of himself as to be worn at all times 
unconsciously, which was its potent charm. Some might 
have said that his modesty w r as at times too noticeable. 
Not so. It was painful to Livingstone to be made a hero, 
to be eulogized for doin^ no more than he felt it his dutv 
to do. While he put the lowest estimate upon his own 
achievements, the mere recital of them had quickened into 
the intensest enthusiasm the heart of the whole civilized 
world. Once, being extremely anxious to go to church, and 
yet dreading the notice it would bring upon him, he man- 
aged without observation to make his way in by a private 
entrance to a seat under the top of the gallery, where he 
would be unseen by the congregation, though seen by the 
minister. In order to shield himself still more, he held his 
head down and covered with his hands. But somehow the 
minister caught sight of him, and most unwisely alluded to 
him in his last prayer. This gave the people intimation 
that he was in the building ; and the moment the benedic- 
tion was pronounced they made a rush for him, some climb- 
ing over the pews in their anxiety and haste to get to him. 
A similar scene is said to have taken place in a church at 
Bath during the meeting of the British Association in 1864. 

Another thing to which Livingstone had an extreme 
aversion was being interviewed for publication. It also 
greatly annoyed him to have people importuning him for 
material for a book or a lecture. A well-known gentleman, 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 307 



who was advertised to deliver a lecture the next day, called 
upon him for the purpose of getting " dots/' at the resideuce 
of Mr. Frederick Fitch, where Livingstone was then stop- 
ping. Mr. Fitch says in allusion to this interview: "The 
Doctor sat rather quiet, and, without being rude, treated 
the gentleman to monosyllabic answers. He could do that 
— could keep people at a distance when they wanted to 
make capital out of him. When the stranger had left, 
turning to my mother he said, with one of his gentlest 
smiles, ' I will tell you any thing you like to ask.' " 

Livingstone's personal appearance on his first return to 
England is thus described: "A foreign-looking person, 
plainly and rather carelessly dressed, of middle height, 
bony frame, and Gaelic countenance, with short-cropped 
hair and mustaches, and generally plain exterior. He ap- 
pears to be about forty years of age. His face is deeply 
furrowed and pretty well tanned. It indicates a man of 
quick and keen discernment, strong impulses, inflexible res- 
olution, and habitual self-command. Unanimated, its most 
characteristic expression is that of severity ; when excited, 
a varied expression of earnest and benevolent feeling, and 
remarkable enjoyment of the ludicrous in circumstances 
and character, passes over it." 

Livingstone had not more than landed in England when 
he hastened to join his loved ones. His w 7 ife had gone part 
of the distance to meet him, so that there were now left only 
his children, mother, brother, and sisters. The meeting with 
his aged mother was most pathetic; neither had ever hoped 
to clasp the other in life again. His father's empty place 
in the family circle affected him deeply. " The first even- 
ing," writes one of his sisters, " he asked all about his ill- 
ness and death. One of us remarking that after he knew 



308 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



he was dying bis spirits seemed to rise, David burst into 
tears. At family worship that evening he said with deep 
feeling: ' We bless thee, O Lord, for our parents; we give 
thee thanks for the dead who has died in the Lord/ " 

Through the hospitality of a noble gentleman — Mr. Webb, 
of Newstead Abbey — Livingstone was enabled to enjoy for 
several months of his stay in England that rest and recrea- 
tion of which he stood so much in need. But he took ad- 
vantage of this pleasant, holiday-like period to work. It 
was here that he wrote his well-known book, " Missionary 
Travels and Researches in South Africa," which, as one of 
the most appreciative of his biographers declares, is not 
only " a permanent addition to the classic library of En- 
glish travel, but a noble monument to a man in whose 
pages worth shines as much as vigor, and modesty as much 
as worth." 



CHAPTER XXI. 



RETURN TO AFRICA — THE RECEPTION AT CAPE TOWN — THE "MA- 
ROBERT" — OBJECT OF THE SECOND EXPEDITION — DISCOVERY OF 
THE TRUE MOUTH OF THE ZAMBESI — THE SAIL UP THE RIVER 
— ARRIVAL AT TETE — THE KEBRABASA RAPIDS — UNSATISFAC- 
TORY CONDUCT OF THE " MA-ROBERT " — EXPLORATIONS OF THE 
SHIRE — DISCOVERY OF LAKES SIIIRNA AND NYAS Q A — STEPS TO- 
WARD THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A MISSION STA'IION — UNEX- 
PECTED NEWS OF THE ARRIVAL OF A LITTLE STRANGER. 



ON the 10th day of March, 1858, Dr. Livingstone 
again left England for Africa. This time he was 
acompanied by Mrs. Livingstone, their youngest son, Os- 
well, and the members of an exploring party that had been 
organized in England for the purpose of aiding him in his 
further researches. Among the latter were Dr. Kirke, a 
distinguished scientist, and Livingstone's brother, Charles. 
The party carried with them the sections of a small steamer, 
which was to be put together at the mouth of the Zambesi, 
and by means of which they were expected to overcome 
many of the difficulties attendant upon their explorations 
of the river. This little steamer Livingstone had affection- 
ately christened the " Ma-Robert," the name by which his 
wife was known among the Makololo and other African 
tribes. 

Recognizing the distinguished services already rendered 
by Livingstone as calling for a mark of its highest appre- 
ciation, as well as desiring to invest him with every author- 
ity in its power while prosecuting his wonderful discoveries, 

(309) 



310 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



the English Government had appointed him consul for South- 
eastern Africa. In the meanwhile, through causes which 
it is unnecessary to state here, Livingstone had severed his 
connection with the London Missionary Society, though he 
had by no means abandoned the determination to do mis- 
sionary work among the natives whenever and wherever 
he could. 

Considering the circumstances that surrounded its organ- 
ization, as well as the new office that had been bestowed 
upon Livingstone, this second expedition was looked upon 
in the light of a national enterprise; and when he sailed 
from England it was with the eves of the whole English 
people upon him. The ever-present object of this expedi- 
tion is thus set forth in Livingstone's instructions: "To ex- 
tend the knowledge already attained of the geography and 
the mineral and agricultural resou rces of Eastern and Cen- V 
tral Africa; to improve his acquaintance with the inhab- 
itants, and to encourage them to apply themselves to agri- 
cultural pursuits and the cultivation of their land, with a 
view to the production of raw material, which might be ex- 
ported to England in return for British manufactures." 

The party landed at Cape Town. There Livingstone and 
his wife found Mr. and Mrs. Moffat awaiting them. A few 
days later Mrs. Livingstone was taken so ill that it was 
thought advisable for her not to attempt going on with the 
explorers. She therefore remained at Cape Town until she 
had partially recovered, when she proceeded to Kuruman 
with her parents. 

Livingstone met with a most enthusiastic reception from 
his countrymen at Cape Town. He was tendered a grand 
banquet, at which a magnificent silver box containing eight 
hundred guineas was presented to him, together with the 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 311 



freedom of the city. Everywhere he went his consul's uni- 
form, especially the Queen's gold band around his cap, at- 
tracted admiring attention. It would be impossible to enu- 
merate the honors that were heaped upon him. Living- 
stone could not help contrasting this visit with one he had 
made six years before. Then no one noticed the poor, ob- 
scure missionary, who had great difficulty in procuring nec- 
essary supplies for the long and hazardous journey since be- 
come the joyful theme of nearly every civilized tongue on 
earth. Now every one was fawning at his feet. He would 
have been less than human had he not bestowed a sarcastic 
reflection upon the world's ways. 

At the mouth of the Zambesi the " Ma-Robert " was put 
together. And now we come to the first important incident 
cf Livingstone's exploration of the Zambesi. It certainly 
was an auspicious augury that it should have happened 
before the expedition had fairly begun. At that day the 
mouths of the Zambesi were but little known. Speculation 
had advanced much in regard to them, while discovery, on 
the other hand, had proved nothing as yet, doubtless be- 
cause it had undertaken nothing. The Portuguese Govern- 
ment, however, was in possession of the secret of the true 
outlet ; but so far, for reasons that will shortly be made 
known, it had chosen to keep it a secret — further, as a se- 
cret well guarded. The impression left by it upon the out- 
side world was that the Quilimane was the only navigable 
mouth of the great river. Their reason for doing this was 
to facilitate and protect their slave-dealing operations. 
While the English cruisers, sent to put down the slave 
traffic, were watching what they believed to be the only 
navigable mouth of the river, the slaves were quietly slipped 
through another and a more direct way. However, to do 



312 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



justice to the local authorities — among them Livingstone's 
generous friend, Major Sicard — ^we must state that they 
knew nothing of these cunning maneuvers on the part of 
the slave-traders. They were as much in the dark as the 
outsiders. As proof of their honesty, Livingstone had no 
sooner discovered the real mouth of the river — the Kou- 
gone outlet — than they at once proceeded in a movement 
to have a station and a fort established at the entrance. Of 
course it brought them into collision with the Portuguese 
Government. But upon this feud it is not necessary to 
dwell. 

The most navigable route being now discovered, the 'Ola- 
Robert " went steaming up the Kongone. Everywhere the 
natives retreated in terror at their approach. This horrid 
puffing monster, with the dense clouds of black smoke pour- 
ing from it. was too much for African nerves. Thev had 
never in their lives seen any thing so terrible, or even 
dreamed of it. Occasionally when the party went on shore 
they could induce them, after much persuasion, to return to 
the banks for another look, especially if the panting monster 
was lying quiet at its moorings; but the moment the whis- 
tle blew they all rushed away again in the greatest terror, 
falling over each other in their mad flight, and shouting 
at the top of their voices: ' ; Mother! mother! Save us, 
mother! *' 

Though there were very few difficulties of navigation to 
overcome while steaming up the delta of the river, the " Ma- 
Robert n nevertheless acted very unsatisfactorily, and Liv- 
ingstone began to fear for a worse exhibition when real ob- 
stacles presented themselves, as well as to have an unpleas- 
ant presentiment that he had been badly swindled in this 
purchase. The slowness of their progress, however, had 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



one advantageous side — it gave Livingstone ample time (or 
accurate observation. He was more than pleased with all 

lie saw. He found the land of the delta so rich that on it, 
he calculated, almost fabulous quantities of cotton and su- 
gar-cane might be raised. If properly cultivated, he did 
not doubt that this delta of the Zambesi could supply the 
whole of Europe with sugar. Xowhere had he seen land 
more fertile, or that could be more easily cultivated. Ten 
acres of such land within easy access of some commercial port 
would be a little fortune to any man. The growth of tim- 
ber in some places was truly magnificent, many of the trees 
towering a hundred and fifty feet high. In one spot alone 
— not more than two or three acres — Livingstone saw ebo- 
nv and lignum-vitie enough to have made their possessor a 
millionare twice over, had the facilities been offered for their 
shipment to England. Such costly woods as these were 
often used as fuel on the " rebellious little steamer." Know- 
ing their value, the engineer often asserted that it u made 
his heart sore to burn wood so valuable." India-rubber 
trees were seen in large quantities, while along the banks 
of the river wild indigo grew in the richest profusion. 

The delta also abounded in animal life. There were 
birds innumerable — from the tiny bee-hunter, flitting in and 
out among the glossy mangoes, to the tall and stately crane 
and flamingo feeding upon the worms and fish along the 
edges of the many islands that dotted the stream. There, 
too, were the brown kite, "piping like a boatswain," the 
spotted cuckoo, the roller horn-bill, and a 1 ther 

" sma\ merry singers," each giving vent to its voluni( 
delicious sounds, which, combining, made "an African 
Christmas seem like an English May." Animals t: 
were, too, of every Mze and variety — from the baby c\'i>a>- 



314 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



dile basking in the sun to the monster hippopotamus, the 
king of the African rivers. 




When the explorers started up the delta the prospect was 
somewhat dreary and uninviting, marked as it was by vast 
stretches of grassy plains, the only other signs of vegetation 
being here and there a cluster of stately palms, the " round, 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 315 



green tops of which looked at a distance as though sus- 
pended in the air." But the farther they advanced the 
more charming grew the scenery. The foliage of the trees 
seemed to vie with each other in their richness and beauty, 
while in many places the grasses and the ferns shot upward 
to the height of a tall man's head. From out the clusters 
of bananas and cocoa-palms peeped the huts of the natives, 
looking very neat and picturesque, while about them the 
little patches of garden, in which grew potatoes, pumpkins, 
cabbages, onions, peas, and many other things, presented a 
scene of pleasing cultivation. These natives of the Zam- 
besi were evidently thrifty farmers. 

At Tete the party was warmly received by the hospitable 
Major Sicard. As to the Makololos who had been left there 
to await Livingstone's return from England, thev were near- 
ly beside themselves with joy at seeing their father once 
more. They leaped and danced about him, and were on 
the point of throwing themselves bodily upon him to em- 
brace him, when one, more observant than the others, sud- 
denly shouted forth: " Look out! look out! you will ruin 
his new T clothes!" For the first time now they all seemed 
to notice how much improved their father was in the style 
of his dress. After that they could do nothing but walk 
around him, and admire the many appointments of his uni- 
form, especially the cap with the gold band. "Why, he is 
finer even than the Portuguese braves at the forts," they 
declared enthusiastically. Livingstone's own pleasure on 
meeting with his faithful men again was considerably damp- 
ened by the fact that while he was gone many had died witli 
that dread disease, small-pox; and six of those lei't, grow- 
ing tired of work and impatient at Livingstone's long ab- 
sence, had gone away to dance before some of the neighbor- 



316 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



ing chiefs. Among these was a cowardly and cruel chief 
by the name of Bonga, who on some slight pretext had 
put all the men to death. The Makololo said : " We do 
not grieve for those who died of the small-pox, for they were 
taken by Mori mo [God] ; but our hearts are sore for the 
six youths who were murdered by Bonga/' Livingstone 
had sad news to impart to them. too. This was the insani- 
ty and death of Sekwebu. At first they were deeply grieved 
by the intelligence, but finally they said: "Well, men must 
all die. They die in one country as well as in another. 
Sekwebu too is with Morimo; so we will not mourn for 
him, for he is at peace." 

On reaching Tete, Livingstone found that the most for- 
midable object that stood in the way of his farther navi- 
gation of the Zambesi was the Kebrabasa Rapids. These 
rapids were about twenty-five or thirty miles above Tete. 
He had heard of them on his journey down from Linyanti, 
though he had not as vet seen them. He now determined 
to go and take a look at them. He found them fully as 
formidable as they had been pictured. They were formed 
by a range of rocky mountains that crossed the Zambesi at 
this point. Here, during the dry season, the bed of the 
river narrowed to a channel of not more than sixty yards 
in width, through which were strewed masses of rock of ev- 
ery conceivable size and shape. The rapids themselves ex- 
tended for fully eight miles. Livingstone saw that it would 
be dangerous to attempt to force a steamer through them 
except during a high flood; but he resolved to try the ex- 
periment as soon as the stream had become somewhat more 
swollen than it was at that time. On returning to Tete he 
learned that these were not the only rapids in the way of nav- 
igation ; that a few miles farther up there were others almost 



LIFE OF DAVfD LIVINGSTONE. 317 

as formidable— the Mburuma. In company with Dr. Kirke 
and four of the Makololo, Livingstone started off in search 
of these rapids. The party had a frightful experience. 
Part of the route lay over rocks so hot that the Makololo's 
feet were burned until they rose into blisters and burst. 
Leaving the poor fellows by the way to heal their burns, 
Livingstone and Dr. Kirke pushed on alone. In three 
hours they made but one mile, while their boots and cloth- 
ing were completely destroyed. It was evident to Living- 
stone that had he and the Makololos taken this route in 
1856, instead of that through the level Shidina country, 
all must have perished. It was surely God who had led 
them aright, and Livingstone devoutly thanked him for 
his mercy. The Mburuma Rapids were found to be almost 
as formidable as those of the Kebrabasa, as Livingstone had 
been told they were. But his faith and courage did not 
permit him to doubt that engineering skill could in time 
overcome them. God would certainly open the way. 

Waiting at Tete for the rains, Livingstone attempted to 
stem the Kebrabasa Rapids when the bed of the river had 
been considerably swollen ; but he found it an impossible 
undertaking with the " Ma-Robert." He now suspected 
more strongly than ever that he had been swindled by the 
builder of the vessel. The amount of fuel she consumed 
was simply enormous. It would have served two steamers 
double her size, while her furnace had to be lighted hours 
before sufficient steam could be gotten up to start her off 
In addition, she " snorted so horribly" that she well de- 
served the name the men had in derision bestowed upon 
her — "The Asthmatic." As to getting up the requisite 
amount of steam to carry her over the rapids, or any thing 
like enough even to make the attempt, every effort in that 



318 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



direction proved a dismal failure. Id fact, she was alto- 
gether unequal to so much as an ordinary emergency, and 
this they soon discovered. Livingstone was both chagrined 
and disgusted at this state of affairs. He determined to 
communicate with the English Government in regard to 
the matter. He did not ask out and out for another steam- 
er of a superior build, but he left it so that they could 
offer one if they desired. While waiting for an answer, 
however, and knowing that such things were often delayed 
to an indefinite time through the w r ant of harmony of some 
of the parties concerned, he determined to get another 
steamer at his own expense. He was enabled to do this 
through the proceeds of the sale of his book. While ar- 
rangements were being made for the new steamer, Living- 
stone decided upon an exploration of the Shire, one of the 
most important tributaries of the Zambesi. When his 
friends at Tete learned of this determination, they tried to 
dissuade him from it. They told him it was a most peril- 
ous undertaking, and one out of which he could scarcely 
hope to come with his life. Besides the dangers of the 
river and the many deadly serpents and ferocious beasts 
with which the forest abounded, the natives along the banks 
of the Shire were among the most treacherous and blood- 
thirsty of all the African tribes. But Livingstone was not 
to be deterred from his undertaking even by a knowledge 
of such dangers as these. He had faced death too many 
times to falter now. So, early in January, 1859, the brave 
explorers set forth. They found things fully as bad as 
they had been represented. Day after day their lives hung 
by a mere thread; but God preserved them. 

The Shire, although much narrower than the Zambesi, 
was far deeper and easier of navigation. Hence the " Ma- 






LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 319 



Robert," though she had behaved so badly at the Kebra- 
basa Rapids, went along very well now — still, at a snail- 
like pace. 

At the village of chief Tin sane a most hostile dernonstra- 
tion awaited the expedition. Fully five hundred men were 
drawn up in line, facing the river, to receive them. Liv- 
ingstone boldly went ashore, seeking a personal interview 
with Tingane. After much delay, during which the aspect 
of things became more and more threatening, his wish was 
granted. When Tingane appeared he was seen to be a 
powerfully built chief, over six feet tall. Livingstone cor- 
dially approached and grasped Tingane's hand, frankly 
stating his object in coming up the river, and politely ask- 
ing permission to proceed. Tingane was charmed and 
flattered, and in a little while the permission was unhesi- 
tatingly given. 

At another village the people acted altogether different- 
ly. They seemed overcome with fright, although Living- 
stone had heard they bore quite a warlike reputation. On 
the approach of Livingstone and his white companions they 
fled in terror to their huts, shutting themselves in and re- 
fusing to be seen. It was doubtless the "Ma-Robert," more 
than anything else, that had frightened them; though the 
farther Livingstone proceeded the more evidences he saw 
that he and his friends were the first white men who had 
ever ascended the Shire. Occasionally on this journey they 
came upon a village where the inhabitants lived in huts, 
either built quite at the tops of thick-growing trees or mid- 
way of the dense branches. These airy dwelling-places 
were very ingeniously contrived, were reached by ladders 
that could be drawn up and letdown, and were constructed 
— as our travelers afterward learned — not only as a protec- 




(320) 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 321 



tion from wild beasts, but from equally dangerous human 
enemies. 

Livingstone and his companions were favorably impressed 
with the lower valley of the Shire, which they left the 
steamer to explore. It was about twenty miles in width, 
with a deep and fertile soil, shut in by tall, beautiful hills 
ciowned with verdure. Many of these hills rose to an al- 
titude of fully four thousand feet above the level of the sea. 
The party climbed to the summit of one, called Morambala 
by the natives. At one side, where it seemed more densely 
wooded than at any other point, and where the ground was 
very moist, Dr. Kirke found no less than thirty different 
species of ferns. In the forests around the base of the Mo- 
rambala monkeys, antelopes, rhinoceroses, and many of the 
larger birds, were seen in the greatest abundance. The 
monkeys were so tame that they often approached near 
enough to snatch playfully at parts of the travelers' cloth- 
ing. In the midst of a plain at the northern end they came 
upon a hot fountain bubbling up to the distance of many 
feet. It boiled up from the earth in two spouts, one but a 
few yards from the other. The water of each was perfect- 
ly clear, and sparkled like crystal in the sun's rays. Both 
spouts were boiling hot, and cooked an egg thoroughly done 
in about the usual time. Penetrating deeper into the for- 
ests that grew about the base of this hill, the party discov- 
ered two enormous pythons coiled together among the 
branches of a tree. They were immediately shot and meas- 
ured. The largest was something over ten feet in length. 
Some natives, who had followed in the wake of the explor- 
ers, besought them for the bodies of the pythons. This be- 
ing granted, they at once ravenously devoured the reptiles. 

The people of this lower valley of the Shire were some- 
21 



322 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



what inclined to be warlike, but they treated the explorers 
quite hospitably. This was due to Livingstone's manner of 
approaching them, and his habit of openly avowing the 
object of his presence among them. They were extensive 
farmers, raising maize, pumpkins, potatoes, and tobacco in 
vast quantities. 

About two hundred miles up the river the travelers came 
to a series of cataracts, to which Livingstone gave the name 
" Murchison Cataracts," in honor of the President of the 
London Geographical Society. As these cataracts stopped 
the farther progress of the party, they returned to Tete. 

In March, 1859, Livingstone again ascended the Shire. 
As the natives had received no hurt on his former visit, 
they now welcomed him cordially. They were convinced 
that he intended them only good, and as this conviction in- 
creased so did their trust in him. On this journey Living- 
stone formed the acquaintance of Chibisa, a chief whom he 
describes as " a jolly fellow who laughs easily — which is al- 
ways a good sign." He reminded Livingstone of Katema, 
since he had Katema's bombastic tendencies and much of 
his kind-heartedness. There were two things in which Chi- 
bisa believed firmly — one, the "divine right of kings;" the 
other, that " Chibisa could do no wrong." Though so hos- 
pitable toward Livingstone and his friends, he had the rep- 
utation of a warrior. This he tried to excuse to Living- 
stone by declaring that those with whom he fought were 
always in the wrong, while he was invariably in the right. 
" I was an ordinary man," he would say to Livingstone, 
" when my father died, and left me the chieftainship; but 
directly I succeeded to the high office I was conscious of 
power passing into my head and down my back. I felt it 
enter, and I knew that I was a chief clothed with author- 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 323 



ity, and possessed of wisdom ; and people then began to fear 
and reverence me." 

At Chibisa's village Livingstone and his party left the 
steamer and started overland in search of a large lake of 
which he had heard during his present and his former vis- 
it. On the 18th of April they came upon Lake Shirwa, as 
it was called by the natives. It was a fine, large sheet of 
water, and the discoverers felt that it was well worth all 
the trials and dangers they had passed. Livingstone 
thought it resembled Lake Ngami, but it was hardly so 
large. The water, too, unlike that of Ngami, was brack- 
ish. Livingstone thus describes the lake: " It was very 
grand, for we could not see the end of it, though some w T ay 
up a mountain ; and all around it are mountains, much 
higher than one ever sees in Scotland. One mountain 
stands in the lake, and people live on it. Another, called 
Zomba, is more than six thousand feet high, and people live 
on it too, for we could see their gardens on its top, which 
is larger than from Glasgow to Hamilton, or about fifteen 
to eighteen miles. The country is quite a highland region, 
and many people live in it. Most of them were afraid of 
us. The women ran into their huts and shut the doors. 
The children screamed in terror, and even the hens would 
fly away and leave their chickens." The lake was found 
to be filled with fish of various kinds; also, with croco- 
diles and hippopotami in abundance. By a measurement 
made afterward it was estimated to be fully eighty miles 
long and nearly twenty in width. 

On their way back the valley of the Shire was again ex- 
amined. Livingstone was still more pleased with it, espe- 
cially that portion lying between the upper and the lower 
plains. He found the entire valley to consist of three dif- 



324 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



ferent levels. First, there was the plain lying immediate- 
ly along the river banks. This was in many parts close 
and hot, very much like that of the Nile. Rising above 
this, in an easterly direction, there was another plain some 
two thousand feet high and four or five thousand feet wide, 
with a salubrious and pleasant climate, and rich in vegeta- 
tion. Lastly, there was a third plain which reached an 
elevation fully three thousand feet above the second, and 
was positively cold. To find so many different varieties of 
climate within so small a radius was both interesting and 
pleasing to Livingstone. It proved how very wonderful 
were the resources of this country which he had come to 
open up. He was more pleased with the central plain than 
with any other, as we have intimated. 

At one point just below this valley the river was exceed- 
ingly deep and rapid, "running in some places like a mill- 
race," says Livingstone, " and with power enough to turn 
all the mills in England." No danger there from a drought. 
In addition to the maize, pumpkins, potatoes, and other veg- 
etables already enumerated as growing here in such prodi- 
gal abundance, there were sugar-cane, cotton, lemons, and 
ginger. The cotton excited the admiration of the whole 
party. It was the most beautiful white cotton they had 
ever seen. Samples of it afterward sent to Manchester cre- 
ated quite a furor, and w r ere pronounced by the best judges 
to be of " the finest quality." In his dispatch announcing 
to the Government his discovery of the lake and this won- 
derful section of country, Livingstone said: "We have 
opened a sugar and cotton district of great and unknown 
extent, and which really seems to afford a reasonable pros- 
pect of great commercial benefit to our own country ; it 
presents facilities for commanding a large section of the 






LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 325 



slave-market on the coast, and offers a fair hope of its sup- 
pression by lawful commerce." 

When news of these valuable discoveries reached En- 
gland, the name of Livingstone shone with increased luster, 
if that were possible, while countless tongues were again add- 
ing their glowing tributes to the measure of his fame. But 
now mark the modest avowal of him who took not one tittle 
of the honor to himself, but gave it to that constantly abid- 
ing Power which had in every thing guided and upheld him : 
" I cannot and will not attribute any of the public atten- 
tion which has been awakened to my own wisdom or to my 
ability. The great Power being my Helper, I shall always 
say that my success is all owing to his favor. I have but 
been the channel of the Divine Power, and I pray that his 
gracious influence may penetrate me so that all may turn 
to the advancement of his gracious reign in this fallen 
world." 

One fruit of Livingstone's discovery of this central valley 
of the Shire was the establishment there, not a great while 
after, of a mission station, over which Bishop McKenzie, 
with some able assistants from the two leading universities 
of England — Cambridge and Oxford — was sent to preside. 
They found it a most favorable spot indeed, and every 
thing promised well until the unfortunate Bishop, through 
a rash and indiscreet step, fell into a fatal error which in 
the end cost him his life. Unlike Livingstone, who at all 
times pursued a conservative course — never, under any 
provocation, espousing the cause of one tribe against an- 
other — the Bishop, in a moment of righteous indignation, 
became the adjuster of the wrongs of a weak tribe that was 
being intimidated by a stronger. It was a kindly and ehiv- 
alric impulse that prompted the Bishop to the step he took, 



326 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



but that it was also a most injudicious and fateful impulse, 
the sequel, alas! showed only too well. His life paid the 
forfeit. He now lies buried on one of the most elevated of 
the plateaus of the central Shire valley, under the shade of 
a tall monarch of the African forest, and through its sway- 
ing branches the winds play the requiem of one truly noble 
and universally regretted. 

But while these missions were being established in the 
Shire valley through Livingstone's influence, we must not 
think that he had forgotten his old friends Sekeletu and 
the Makololos, or their pressing needs. His heart had 
been with them from the moment of his departure from 
Linyanti to the present time. One of his first steps on ar- 
riving in England had been to get a missionary, or mission- 
aries, sent to Linyanti. He was willing to go himself as 
their missionary — nay, he would gladly have done so — but 
he felt that other and more pressing duties were calling him 
in another direction. As soon as he had acquired a reve- 
nue from the sale of his book, he proceeded to supplement 
his petition by the offer of five hundred pounds paid down 
for an outfit, and one hundred and fifty pounds yearly to- 
ward the salary of the missionary. Soon after this two mis- 
sionaries, with their assistants, were sent to the country of 
the Makololo. The readiness with which Livingstone took 
so snug a sum from his private income — never at any time 
very large — and the equal readiness with which he pledged 
himself to pay the additional one hundred and fifty pounds 
a year, proved more than ever the sincerity of his desires 
to better the condition of those for whose final enlighten- 
ment and elevation he had labored so unremittingly for 
eighteen years. 

Money was never to Livingstone the source of any sordid 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 327 



consideration. He saw in it merely the means of accom- 
plishing the work to which he had given himself. As to 
his own personal needs and wants— even that provision for 
the future about which the least mercenary of men are wont 
to concern themselves so closely as to forget the claims of 
others — he left these, as he left himself and all that was his 
(wife, children, every thing) in the hands of Him who had 
upheld his every step along the course he had made such 
an honor to himself and such a blessing to others. " My 
funds could not be better spent than in this cause,'' said 
Livingstone when speaking of it to a friend. " You fear 
that I will impoverish myself. I have no such fear. Peo- 
ple who are born rich sometimes become miserable for fear 
of becoming poor. I have the advantage, you see, in not 
being afraid to die poor. If I live, I must succeed in what 
I have undertaken; death alone will put a gtop to my ef- 
forts." 

Early in August Livingstone began his third expedition 
up the Shire. He was again accompanied by Dr. Kirke, 
his brother Charles, and thirty-six of the Makololo men. It 
was on this journey that the magnificent Nyassa lake was 
discovered by the explorers, after a twenty days' hard 
march northward through the Shire country. The very 
first view of it excited their warmest enthusiasm, for it was 
the grandest sheet of water they had yet seen in Africa — 
nearly two hundred miles long and fully fifty in breadth. 
Like all vast bodies of water, it was subject to sudden and 
violent storms. Our explorers were caught in one of these 
storms, and came near being shipwrecked. 

The discovery of the two lakes, the Shirwa and the Ny- 
assa, proved of more importance than was at first supposed. 
They were both found to lie parallel to the ocean, and the 



328 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



whole traffic of the regions beyond must necessarily pass 
through them. Though greatly pleased by this last dis- 
covery, and much impressed with the wonderful country; 
nevertheless Livingstone grew sick at heart when he found 
that it was the center of an immense district that annually 
supplied more slaves for the markets of the coast than any 
other of its size in the whole Continent. Here once more 
was he face to face. with that dread evil which failed not 
to blight every thing it touched; here once more did he 
stand within an earthly Eden, over every fair flower of 
which the serpent had left its poisonous trail. 

The country around Lake Nyassa was densely populated, 
far exceeding any thing of the kind Livingstone had yet 
seen in Africa. At its southern end there was an almost 
unbroken continuation of villages, the majority of them con- 
taining not less than a thousand inhabitants each. Unlike 
many of the African tribes, the people of this favored region 
seemed imbued with a spirit of industry. They cultivated 
the soil extensively, raised nearly every thing it was prac- 
ticable for them to raise, besides working in iron and cot- 
ton, and at basket-making. Almost every village had its 
smelting -house, charcoal-burners, and blacksmiths. The 
axes, spears, arrow-heads, needles, bracelets, and anklets they 
turned out, while not of the finest workmanship, were fash- 
ioned with much skill. Crockery and pottery of various 
kinds were also manufactured, while strong and serviceable 
fishing-nets, after the most approved mode, were made from 
the fibers of the buaze, which grows in abundance upon the 
hills. In spite of the creditable beginning they seemed to 
be making in the direction of civilization, these people had 
many strange, even barbarous customs. Among others was 
the habit of wearing the pelele, or lip-ring, which prevailed 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 329 



principally among women. A small hole was made in the 
upper lip and gradually widened, the latter process extend- 
ing over several years. This continued until an aper- 
ture from one to two inches, according to the fancy of the 
wearer, became permanent. Into this aperture a large 
tin or iron ring was forced until the lip protruded two 
inches or more beyond the nose. " Thus," says Livingstone, 
" when an old wearer of a hollow ring smiles, by the ac- 
tion of the muscle of the cheek the ring and lip outside of 
it are dragged back and thrown over the eyebrows. The 
nose is seen through the middle of the ring; and the ex- 
posed teeth show how carefully they have been chipped to 
look like those of the crocodile." To Livingstone's oft- 
repeated question, as to why they followed this custom, 
they invariably replied, " O because it is in the fashion ! " 
However, on his putting the same query to an old chief, 
he was, greeted with the following reply, not given without 
some little attempt at a display of humor: " For beauty, to 
be sure! Men have beards and whiskers; women have 
none; and what kind of creature would a woman be with- 
out whiskers and without the pelele? She would have a 
mouth like a man, and no beard. Ha! ha! ha!" 

Although inclined to be very prying and curious, the 
people of this region were quite inoffensive; at least, they 
never showed any signs of molesting the strangers. It is a 
wonder, too, especially as they took the white members of 
the exploring party to be some kind of animal of which 
they had never even heard. "Their worst annoyance," 
says Livingstone, " was to lift the edge of the tent, peep in, 
as boys in England do the curtain of a traveling menag- 
erie, and exclaim, 'Chirombo, Chirombo!' which being An- 
glicized means, 'Wild beasts, fit to be eaten! ' " In a little 



330 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



while, however, Livingstone had made such friends with 
every tribe visited in the Nyassa country that they no 
longer looked upon him as a curious beast, but as a most 
superior being. As the Makololo had done, so did they too 
in time begin to call him father, and to greet him with a 
show of the greatest reverence and respect wherever he 
appeared. 

Early in November, 1859, Livingstone found himself 
back at Tete. Here most unexpected but pleasing intelli- 
gence of a domestic nature greeted him. A letter from 
Mrs. Livingstone stated, among other things, that a little 
daughter had been born to them on the 16th of November, 
1858. " The Lord bless her, and make her his own child 
in heart and in life ! " was Livingstone's fervent prayer 
when he read these lines. To think she had been almost a 
year in the world before he had heard of her existence! 



CHAPTER XXII. 

GOING HOME WITH THE MAKOLOLO — A SECOND LOOK AT THE 
VICTORIA FALLS — PAINFUL NEWS — ARRIVAL AT SESHEKE — SE- 
KELETU's TERRIBLE CONDITION' — LIVINGSTONE EFFECTS A CURE 
— PAINFUL FOREBODINGS IN REGARD TO THE MAKOLOLO — THE 
RETURN TO TETE — DEVOTION OF LIVINGSTONE'S MEN — DR. 
KIRKE MEETS WITH A LOSS — THE NEW STEAMER "riONEER" 
— ARRIVAL OF BISHOP M'kENZIE AND ASSISTANTS — TO THE 
MOUTH OF THE ROVUMA — UP THE SHIRE — AT CHIBISA's TOWN 
— LIBERATION OF THE SLAVES — AN ERRAND OF PEACE TURNED 
INTO ONE OF WAR— THE NEW MISSION — ARRIVAL OF MRS. LIV- 
INGSTONE, MISS M'KENZIE, AND OTHERS — DISASTROUS ENDING 
OF THE LITTLE MISSION — ILLNESS AND DEATH OF MRS. LIV- 
INGSTONE—SECOND EXPLORATION OF THE ROVUMA — AGAIN UP 
THE SHIRE — AN APPALLING STATE OF AFFAIRS— THE CURSE 
OF THE SLAVE-TRADE. 

FOR a long while Livingstone had cherished the desire 
to return to his old friends, Sekeletu and the Mako- 
lolo. He therefore departed from Tete for Liny an ti on the 
15th of May, 1860. Before leaving he employed himself 
in putting together and operating a sugar-mill that had 
been sent to Sekeletu by a noble lady in England. He 
would have liked to carry it to the chief on this expedition, 
but it was impossible to do so until he had stemmed the 
rapids with the new steamer. 

The party left Tete in the best of spirits, especially the 
Makololo, whose joy was great when they found themselves 
once more homeward-bound. The white 1 men were Dr. Liv- 
ingstone, his brother Charles, and Dr. Kirke. The Mako- 

(331) 



332 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



lolo were very attentive to each of them, but it could be 
plainly seen that no one would ever supplant Livingstone 
in their affections. They took it turn about to cut grass 
for the Englishmen's beds, and always secured a plentiful 
supply, though sometimes at a great discomfort to them- 
selves. On these beds, with their thick- rugs drawn over 
them, the three white men slept very comfortably, while 
the Makololo tended the fires all through the night, in 
watches of from four to five each. The beds of the Mako- 
lolo were most ingeniously contrived, consisting of palm- 
leaves sewed together around three sides of the square, the 
one side being left open so as to enable the man to crawd 
into it. 

On the 9th of August, 1860, the party reached the great 
Victoria Falls, the smoke of which they had seen fully 
twenty miles away. The awe of Dr. Kirke and Charles 
Livingstone on beholding this immense cataract was fully 
as great as Livingstone's had been on a previous occasion. 
Charles Livingstone, who had seen Niagara, pronounced 
the Victoria far superior to that in every way. Here 
they remained long enough to make as accurate measure- 
ments as possible. This was chiefly at Livingstone's desire. 
He was afraid that he had not been altogether accurate in 
his first reports. So unusual were the dimensions of this 
gigantic fall of waters, he also feared that many might ac- 
cuse him of exaggeration. Such a tendency as this was as 
foreign to Livingstone's nature as was point-blank decep- 
tion itself — the latter, as we well know, an utter impossi- 
bility with him. He held in supreme contempt, even loath- 
ing, the least inclination to the slightest misrepresentation, 
especially so when that misrepresentation was for the pur- 
pose of gaining the Avorld's ear. ht The truth, the unblem- 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 333 



ished, unimpeachable truth, at all hazards," was his motto. 
He was therefore greatly pleased to find that his former es- 
timates had all been right. 

When the party reached the confines of Sekeletu's ter- 
ritory they were greeted by very unexpected and crushing 
news, especially to Livingstone. Both of the missionaries 
sent through his efforts to Linyanti had died with the fe- 
ver; and the assistants, becoming frightened and discour- 
aged, had left the place. If they had only taken liberal 
doses of the quinine which had been sent along with the 
supplies, Livingstone thought much, if not all, of this mis- 
fortune might have been averted. He suspected that in 
the confusion of moving to the place, and in the midst of 
the many exciting incidents that had doubtless attended 
their settling down among the Makololo, the little packets 
of medicine had either been neglected or entirely over- 
looked. On reaching Linyanti he found that his surmises 
were correct. 

At Sesheke the travelers came upon Sekeletu, who had 
recently taken up his residence there. Having been seized 
by that fearful disease, leprosy, he had withdrawn himself 
from the sight of his people, and was now lying in a cov- 
ered wagon surrounded by a high wall of reeds. He would 
allow no one to approach him save a. female doctor of the 
Manyeti tribe, who professed to have an infallible cure for 
the dread malady. So far, however, she had made little, if 
any, headway. Poor Sekeletu was indeed a pitiful-looking 
object. Tears filled Livingstone's eyes as he gazed upon 
him. Sekeletu's joy on once more beholding his much- 
loved father was pathetic to see, especially as ho was 
weighed down by the knowledge that he must not touch 
him. Livingstone dismissed the female doctor and installed 



334 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



himself as Sekeletu's physician. Under his skillful treat- 
ment, combined with that of Dr. Kirke, Sekeletu entirely re- 
covered. But his once proud spirit was broken : he did not 
appear like the same man. Besides, during Livingstone's ab- 
sence he had been very imprudent: he had allowed himself 
to be drawn into war with several of the neighboring chiefs. 
Having ro martial skill like that of his father, he had been 
defeated every time. Believing his powers on the wane, 
many of his people had deserted him. Others, he had ev- 
ery reason to believe, were at this time forming a plot 
against him. Indeed, as Livingstone feared, the glory of 
the Makololo was fast passing away. It wrung his heart to 
see thus early the apparent signs of inevitable decay on 
a people whom he had hoped to redeem and to render one 
of the most powerful, useful, and prosperous tribes in the 
whole Continent. These painful forebodings were now re- 
alized. In 1864 Sekeletu died ; then ensued a fierce strug- 
gle for the chieftainship, during which the outside chiefs, 
seeing how the people were divided against each other, 
deemed it a decisive moment for striking their own blows. 
Thus the broad, beautiful, and smiling country which Se- 
bituane had conquered, and in which he had reigned as a 
king over his kingdom, became almost as a desolate wil- 
derness, while the once proud race was scattered like chaff 
before the wind. 

As soon as the people learned that Livingstone was at 
Sesheke they flocked in great crowds to hear him. If he 
had ever doubted their love and loyalty, he had ample 
proof of it now. He remained among them several weeks, 
preaching and teaching, and left at last with his heart filled 
with the grave apprehensions A\e have noted. 

Many striking incidents marked the journey back to Tete, 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 335 



but we relate only two of them. At the Mburuma Rapids 
the travelers had an eloquent proof of the bravery and de- 
votion of the Makololo. While going over the most dan- 
gerous of the rapids, the two canoes almost simultaneously 
lurched and filled with water. They were in the greatest 
danger of being immediately swamped, in which event all 
the men would surely have perished. But without a mo- 
ment's hesitation the four Makololos leaped from the canoes 
into the water, two out of each ; and they ordered a Batoka 
man to do the same, declaring that " the white men must 
be saved at all hazards." " But I cannot swim," remon- 
strated the Batoka. "Jump out, then, and hold on to the 
canoe," again ordered the Makololo. He dared not longer 
hesitate. Swimming along-side the canoes, the Makololo 
successfully guided them over the rapids, though at the 
greatest danger to themselves. Once on the other side, they 
ran the canoes to the shore, and began to bail them out as 
coolly and as calmly as though nothing unusual had hap- 
pened. 

Dr. Kirke and Charles Livingstone were struck with 
intense admiration for this daring act, and were loud in 
their praise; but the Makololo seemed to value far more 
than any thing else the warm clasp of the hand and the 
expressive glance of the eye given them by Livingstone, 
for whose sake they would gladly have faced death many 
times over. 

In one of the Kebrabasa Rapids the canoe which bore 
Dr. Kirke, Charles Livingstone, and two of the Makololo 
men was suddenly swamped. Each had to swim for his 
life, and it was with the utmost difficulty that they finally 
reached the shore. Greatly to the Doctor's regret, he found 
that he had lost by this catastrophe a chronometer, a ba- 



336 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 






rometer, and the many drawings and notes made during the 
journey. 

On the 23d of November the explorers found themselves 
safe at Tete, after an absence of a little over six months. 
Early in December they again left Tete. This time- they 
were bound for the Kongone entrance, where they expected 
to meet the " Pioneer," the new steamer sent for their use 
by the British Government. They took along with them 
the " Ma-Robert," which they intended to leave at this 
point until she could be carried away. But alas! the days 
of '* the asthmatic old lady" were numbered. On the 21st 
of December she grounded on a sand-bank, where she had 
to be abandoned. It became necessary to make the rest 
of the journey on foot, and it was in sore straits that 
the plucky little band arrived at the mouth of the river 
on the 4th of January, 1861. Twenty-seven days after- 
ward, on the 31st of January, the new steamer " Pioneer " 
was anchored outside the bar. As the weather was very 
rough, she did not venture in until February 4th. A few 
days later two of Her Majesty's cruisers arrived, bringing, 
among other passengers, Bishop McKenzie and assistants, 
who were then on their way to organize the long talked-of 
mission station in the valley of the Shire. 

With the " Pioneer ' ; came orders to Livingstone from 
the Government to proceed at once to the mouth of the Ro- 
vuma River, and there begin an exploration of it. Living- 
stone had long had his eyes upon this river. He believed 
that through it he might find a more uninterrupted and 
promising water-route from the coast to Lake Nyassa than 
that through the Shire and Zambesi. It was upon such in- 
timations made to the Government that they had sent him 
directions to sail for the mouth of the Rovuma. The Bish- 






LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 337 



op and his assistants accompanied Livingstone on this trip. 
If they could reach their destination through the Rovuma 
and Lake Nyassa, so much the better. If they could not, 
then they could return and take the route by the Zambesi 
and Shire. 

On the 25th day of February the mouth of the Rovuma 
was reached. The visitors found there a magnificent nat- 
ural harbor and bay. They steamed up the mouth with 
very little difficulty, but shortly after entering the stream 
found the bed so low that they were soon compelled to re- 
turn, fearing that if they did not do so they would run 
aground and have to remain there until the rains came. 

Returning to the Kongone, they sailed on that tributary 
up into the Zambesi, and thence to the Shire. Although 
the latter river was very deep, they nevertheless had great 
difficulty in getting over some places. Again a mistake 
had been made — this time in sending a steamer that drew 
fully five feet of water. This rendered the vessel utterly 
unfit for the navigation of many of the shallower streams. 

On arriving at the town of his old friend Chibisa, Liv- 
ingstone was distressed to learn that a fierce war was rag- 
ing in the country of the Manganja, the very people among 
whom the Bishop and his assistants were going to labor. 
They learned that this war had grown out of the horrid slave 
traffic, which had increased to an alarming extent since 
Livingstone's last visit. Chibisa also informed them that a 
large slave party would pass through his village the follow- , 
ing morning on its way down to the coast. The warm blood 
of the generous and impetuous McKenzie was fired by this 
information. "Shall we not interfere?" he asked Living- 
stone quickly. Livingstone's own heart was bleeding over 
the woes of these poor oppressed creatures. He felt that he 
22 



538 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



would gladly give his life to right their wrongs. But if he 
interfered in this instance, would it have the effect desired? 
Would it frighten the dread slave-masters into a future 
abandonment of this section? or would it only precipitate 
matters, and thus draw him and his friends into hostile col- 
lision not only with the traders themselves but with the 
slave-dealing tribes? This was a catastrophe that Living- 
stone had all along dreaded, and of which he had hitherto 
steered clear. But in this case the calls of humanity were 
especially pressing. Gould he stand by inactive and wit- 
ness such a sight as he would witness on the morrow? Had 
not he and his friends the balance of power in their hands, 
since there was quite a little army of them, whereas the 
slave-traders were likely to number only two or three, with 
perhaps a dozen drivers? Besides, Chibisa's people were 
bitterly opposed to the traffic, and would only need a word 
from Livingstone to gain them as allies. Hitherto, when 
he had met the long procession of slaves, he had either been 
in a hostile country or with but little assistance at hand. 
Now every thing was different. What should he do? 
While Livingstone was thus deliberating the band of slaves 
arrived. Before he could reach a decision the cowardice of 
the drivers had thrown every thing into the hands of the 
explorers, and there was no longer a call for hesitancy. The 
scene is thus described : 

"A long line of manacled men and women made their ap- 
pearance. The black drivers, armed with muskets and be- 
decked with various articles of finery, marched jauntily in 
the front, middle, and rear of the line, some of them blow- 
ing exulting notes out of long tin horns. They seemed to 
feel that they were doing a very noble thing, and might 
proudly march with an air of triumph. But the instant 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 339 



the fellows caught a glimpse of the English, they darted off 
like mad into the forest; so fast, indeed, that we caught but 
a glimpse of their red caps and of their heels. The chief 
of the party alone remained ; and he, from being in front, 
had his hand tightly clasped by a Makololo. He proved to 
be a well-known slave of the late commandant at Tete, and 
for some time our own attendant while there. On asking 
him how he obtained these captives, he replied he had 
bought them ; but on our inquiring of the people themselves 
all save four said they had been captured in war. While 
this inquiry was going on he bolted too. 

"The captives knelt down, and, in the way of expressing 
thanks, clapped their hands with great energy. They were 
thus left entirely in our hands, and knives were soon at 
work cutting women and children loose. It was more dif- 
ficult to cut the men adrift, as each had his neck in the fork 
of a stout stick, six or seven feet long, and kept by an iron 
rod, which was riveted at both ends across the throat. With 
a saw, luckily in the Bishop's baggage, one by one the men 
were sawed out into freedom. The women,- on being told 
to take the meal they were carrying and cook breakfast for 
themselves and the children, seemed to consider the news 
too good to be true, but after a little coaxing went at it 
with alacrity, and made a capital fire by which to boil their 
pots with the slave sticks and bonds — their old acquaint- 
ances through many a sad night and weary day. 

"Many were mere children, about four years of age and 
under. One little boy, with the simplicity of childhood, 
said to our men: 'The others tied and starved us; you cut 
the ropes, and tell us to eat. What sort of people are you ? 
Where do you come from?' Two of the women had been 
shot the day before for attempting to untie the thongs. . . . 



340 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



One woman had her infant's brains knocked out because 
she could not carry her load and it; and a man was dis- 
patched with an ax because he had broken down with fa- 
tigue." 

The number of the unhappy creatures thus liberated by 
Livingstone and his friends was eighty-four. When they 
were told that they might go where they pleased or remain 
with the mission about to be started, they quickly chose the 
latter, no doubt feeling that they would be much safer near 
those who had proved to be their benefactors. 

After a conference with his party, Livingstone decided 
that it might be advisable to go on a friendly visit to the 
chief of the Ajana, the powerful and warlike tribe that was 
then so cruelly oppressing the Manganja. It would cer- 
tainly be prudent to endeavor to establish peaceful rela- 
tions between the two tribes before Bishop McKenzie took 
up his abode with the Manganja. Unfortunately for this 
movement, Chibisa accompanied the party. As he was 
known to be the friend and champion of the Manganja, 
and a warrior of considerable renown, it is not to be won- 
dered at that his presence should have been misconstrued. 
The road along which their route lay presented a dreadful 
aspect. Many villages were in ashes, others were still burn- 
ing, while the wailing of the homeless women and children 
was heart-rending to hear. Finally they came in sight of the 
village they were seeking. Just before reaching this point 
the whole party had engaged in fervent prayer, led by the 
Bishop. They then bravely advanced, politely requesting a 
parley. Doubtless this might have been granted them but 
for an unfortunate diversion that occurred at the moment. 
Some of the poor captive Manganja, seeing Chibisa, shouted 
with joy: "Our Chibisa is come! Our Chibisa, our great 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 341 



warrior, is come! " The instant these cries fell upon their 
ears the Ajana warriors started up, snatched at their weap- 
ons, and rushed at the party, crying, " War! war! war! " 
Following close upon this dreadful cry came a shower of 
poisoned arrows. Fortunately none of the party were hurt. 
Livingstone tried to call out to them to command attention, 
declaring that they were all friends, but it was impossible 
for his voice to be heard above the din. The party was 
now compelled to fire upon the Ajana in self-defense. This 
was the first tkne in all his African experience that Living- 
stone had been forced to resort to such measures, and it 
troubled his mind greatly. Never, in all the perilous en- 
counters with hostile bands, had one shot been fired, either 
by himself or by his men ; never had one life been taken by 
their hands. Nay, he might go farther still, and say never 
had one drop of blood been spilled by them. What a rec- 
ord for a man who had twice passed directly through the 
heart of the most purely savage country on the face of the 
globe! So little was Livingstone expecting such an emer- 
gency that he had failed to arm himself with even a pistol, 
and one had now to be forced into his hands. Not that he 
was a coward, and feared to use the weapon — to think of 
calling this splendid man a coward! — but that he was bit- 
terly averse to shedding human blood even under provoca- 
tion. 

The encounter was hot and serious, but finally the Ajana 
were driven off. It was with a sad heart that Livingstone 
returned to Chibisa's village. Many gloomy forebodings 
filled his mind, and these increased as he took his departure 
for Tete, leaving the Bishop and his assistants established 
in their mission. The errand of peace had ended in one of 
war. What serious consequences might not now result? 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE, 343 

The Ajana were dangerous and desperate, and the new- 
comers had made enemies of them instead of friends— a 
state of affairs altogether repugnant to one of Livingstone's 
nature. His last words to the Bishop were of counsel, that 
he should be careful and take no further part in attempting 
to adjust the wrongs of the Manganja, but do all he could 
to establish peaceful relations between the two tribes. Alas 
that the kindly and impulsive man did not act in accord- 
ance with this advice! 

On the last day of January, 1862, Livingstone was again 
at the little station r.t the mouth of the Kongone, where he 
had the happiness of greeting his wife, who had just arrived 
by Her Majesty's ship " Gorgon." With Mrs. Livingstone 
came Miss McKenzie (the Bishop's sister) and the wives of 
two of the other missionaries, who had come out to rejoin 
their dear ones in the valley of the Shire. The "Gorgon" 
had also brought along the sections of the new brig, the 
" Lady Nyassa," which was Livingstone's own purchase, 
and which he designed principally for navigation on the 
Shire — hence the name. 

While Livingstone was superintending the putting to- 
gether of the " Lady Nyassa," Capt. Wilson of the " Gor- 
gon," accompanied by Dr. Kirke and several of the ship's 
crew, went on with the ladies who had come out to join the 
mission. At Tete they received news of the calamity that 
had overwhelmed the little mission and culminated in the 
death of the Bishop and three of his assistants. The ladies 
were completely overcome. No course was left them now 
but to return to the country from which they had departed 
only a few weeks before, filled with hopeful anticipations. 

Finding it difficult to put the u Lady Nyassa" together 
at the mouth of the river, Livingstone determined to tow 



344 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



the sections up as far as Shupanga by means of the " Pio- 
neer." Soon after reaching this point he too learned of the 
sad fate of the mission. The distress and grief that filled 
his tender, sympathetic heart may well be imagined. Speak- 
ing of his feelings a short time afterward, he says: "This 
blow is quite bewildering; but in this, as in every thing else, 
we must bow to the will of Him who doeth all things well." 
Alas! he little dreamed of the blow that was soon to fall 
many times more crushingly upon him. 

Through circumstances that it was impossible for him to 
control, Livingstone was compelled to remain at Shupanga 
much longer than he had expected. While a moderately 
healthy spot during some seasons of the year, Shupanga was 
also an exceedingly unhealthy place at other seasons. This 
was especially the case during the prevalence of the fever 
scourge, by which it was regularly visited once a year. 

As the fever period began to approach Livingstone grew 
more and more apprehensive, chiefly on his wife's account. 
Still, he hoped to the last that he would be enabled to get 
off before any thing serious occurred. But alas ! he did not. 
On the 21st of April Mrs. Livingstone was taken ill. The 
symptoms were not alarming at first, and, though very un- 
easy in regard to her, Livingstone believed that it was only 
an ordinary sickness. Instead of changing for the better, 
however, the symptoms grew more threatening. In six 
days from her attack she was delirious and raging with 
fever. Livingstone could deceive himself no longer — his 
wife's condition was critical. He tried to prepare himself 
for what might happen, but it had all come upon him so 
suddenly, so unexpectedly, that it completely unmanned 
him. In another day he knew that all hope was at an end 
— that the blow must fall, that even now the Omnipotent 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 345 



Arm was raised to strike it. But it was too much even for 
him, with all his courage and with all his faith. When the 
end came he who had faced death in so many forms, who 
had stood unawed before dangers the most terrifying, broke 
down and wept like a little child. Can we wonder at this 
when we recall the heart of him who had been thus be- 
reaved — its deep and abiding possibilities of tender and 
devoted love? "It is the first stroke I have suffered/' he 
says, in pouring the anguish of his stricken soul out upon 
the senseless pages of his journal, " and quite takes away 
my strength. I wept over her who well deserves many 
tears. I loved her when I married her, and the longer I 
lived with her I loved her the more. God pity the poor 
children, who were all tenderly attached to her; and I am 
left alone in the world by one w r hom I felt to be a part of 
myself. I hope it may, by divine grace, lead me to realize 
heaven r.s my home, and that she has but preceded me in 
the journey. O my Mary, my Mary! how often w T e have 
longed for a quiet home, since you and I were cast adrift 
at Kolobeng! Surely the removal by a kind Father who 
knoweth our frame means that he rewarded you by taking 
you to the best home— the eternal one in heaven. " He had 
lost her, the w 7 ife of his youth, the companion of his matur- 
er years, the sharer of his joys and his sorrows. The strong- 
est bond that held him to earth had been severed ; the gold- 
en links of the chain that had so long bound his heart a 
willing captive were rent asunder. His Mary was dead — 
she whose gentle smile had ever greeted him, even amidst 
the most harassing circumstances; she whose tender lips 
had never once reproached him for the hardships of the 
way; she who had ever been his help and comfort, his 
sweet fortress of refuge in a wilderness oi' sorrow, his 



346 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



cheery fellow-traveler through the earthly pilgrimage. Yes, 
she was gone, and he was left to tread the weary way 
alone. It is no wonder that in the first outburst of grief 
he should have exclaimed, " Now 7 for the first time in my 
life I am willing to die! Take me too, O God.''" Under 
the large baobab-tree at Shupanga, which has since become 
so inseparably associated with memories of her, and which 
has been made the theme of more than one poet's verse, 
lies all that is mortal of Mary Moffat Livingstone — a mis- 
sionary's daughter, a missionary's wife. 

This mighty tree under which Mrs. Livingstone lies buried 
is full sixty feet in circumference. It has been mentioned 
in the works of several explorers as being of an unusually 
large size even in that country of large trees. There were 
several of these baobab-trees around Shupanga, though they 
are found more abundantly in those sections just south of 
the Sahara. The tree is not so much noted for its height 
as for its breadth. It seldom reaches a distance of over 
one hundred feet. On account of its great strength and 
durability — some of them are said to live more than a 
thousand years — the natives often build their huts within 
the branches, reaching them by means of a cunningly con- 
trived ladder. The principal object, however, in building 
the huts in the tops of these trees is that it gives the occu- 
pant security against the deadly attacks of lions, leopards, 
and other dangerous wild beasts. 

Livingstone could not' be idle, even in the midst of this 
crushing sorrow. With the last tears shed upon his wife's 
grave, when he was in all probability never to look on it 
again, he arose reconsecrated to the work before him. In 
a week after her death he was again at his post, helping 
with his own hands to put the " Lady Nyassa " together. 




BAOBAB-TREK AND NATIVE HUT. 



Livingstone and his companions jiow started on another 
exploration of the Rovuma. This time they succeeded in 
reaching a point some one hundred and fifty miles from its 
mouth. Here they were stopped by cataracts. The people 
in the neighborhood of these cataracts were peaceable and 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 






industrious, and, with few exceptions, received the travel- 
ers in a friendly manner. They were called the Makoa, 
and were known by a cicatrice on the brow in the form of 
a crescent, with the horns pointing downward. 

This voyage up the Rovuma was almost as disappointing 
as the first had been. Although Livingstone succeeded in 
getting more than a hundred miles farther, he had not 
found that uninterrupted water-route from the sea to Lake 
Nyassa which he had hoped to find. Perhaps, after all, it 
would be better to seek to establish the course by way of 
the Zambesi and the Shire. With this object in view, Liv- 
ingstone steamed back to the Kongone entrance of the Zam- 
besi, awd thence to the Shire. This was in the beginning 
of 1863. . 

On moving up the Shire Livingstone found a most ap- 
palling state of affairs. His recent wonderful discoveries in 
the valley of the Shire, as communicated by him to the Gov- 
ernment, had produced an outside effect which he had not 
anticipated. They had served to stimulate the desires and 
kindle into renewed vigor the activity of the Portuguese 
slave-traders, who had already begun to flock in great 
crowds to this beautiful and promising region. Happy 
villages had been depopulated ; smiling plains had become 
the scenes of wretchedness aud woe; husbands had been 
torn from wives, wives from husbands, and children from 
their mothers' arms; while long lines of miserable, heart- 
broken creatures, fastened together with chain or fork, 
were daily urged along like cattle before the lash of their 
cruel drivers. The chief instigator of all this horrible work 
was Mariano, the most cruel of all the Portuguese slave- 
agents. He not only laid plans for the capture of slaves, 
and had them seized and carried off by his agents when- 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 349 

ever and wherever they could get their hands upon them, 
but he also stirred up one tribe against another until war 
in its most horrible form ensued. Villages were set on fire, 
and the inhabitants, fleeing for their lives, met a fate far 
more dreadful than death by falling into the hands of the 
traders. The ruthless torch was applied to the store-house 
as well as to the home ; and all their provisions being de- 
stroyed, famine resulted. From this cause alone hundreds 
of the villagers perished. The revolting picture that greet- 
ed Livingstone's eyes on his ascent into the valley of the 
Shire is thus drawn by his own hand: "A little more than 
twelve months before the valley of the Shire was populous 
with peaceful and contented tribes; now the country was 
all but a desert, the very air polluted by the putrid car- 
casses of the slain, which lay rotting on the plains, and 
floated in the waters of the river in such numbers as to 
clog the paddles of the steamer. Once they saw a croco- 
dile make a rush at the carcass of a boy, and shake it as a , 
terrier-dog shakes a rat, while others rushed to share in the 
meal, and quickly devoured it. The miserable inhabitants 
who had managed to avoid being slain or carried off into 
captivity were collecting insects, plants, and wild fruits — 
any thing, in short, that would stave off starvation — in the 
neighborhood of the villages where they had formerly en- 
joyed peace and plenty. They were entirely naked, save 
for the palm-leaf aprons they wore, as every thing of any 
value had been carried off by the slave-stealers. The sight 
of hundreds of putrid dead bodies and bleached skeletons 
was not half so painful as the groups of women and chil- 
dren who were seen sitting amidst the ruins of their former 
dwellings, with their ghastly, famine-stricken faces, and dull, 
dead eyes. These made up such a tale of woe and misery, 



350 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



that those who were dead might be deemed fortunate in 
comparison with the survivors, who instinctively clung to 
the devastated spot they had once called home, and those 
who had been led into life-long captivity." 

This beast of slavery was indeed a monster of iniquity so 
terrible, so strong that even Livingstone's determined hands 
could not reach about its throat to strangle it. But as long 
as there was breath in his body he would fight the monster 
— yea, fight it to the death. 

After spending several months in and around the Xyassa 
country, during which he made a note of many interesting 
points to be used on future explorations, Doctor Living- 
stone once more returned to England. 



CHAPTER XXIII. 



LIVINGSTONE AGAIN IN ENGLAND— DEATH OF HIS MOTHER— 
"FEAR GOD, AND WORK HARD" — HIS IMPRESSIONS IN REGARD 

TO THE NILE SOURCES — THE RETURN TO AFRICA THE START 

FOR THE INTERIOR — BAD CONDUCT OF THE MEN— THE WORLD 
LOSES SIGHT OF HIM — REPORTED DEATH — FEARS AND DOUBTS 
— MR. YOUNG GOES IN SEARCH OF HIM — NEWS OF HIS SAFETY 
— LETTERS — THE DISPATCHES FROM BANGWEOLO — ANOTHER 
PERIOD OF SILENCE AND SUSPENSE — STANLEY TO THE RESCUE. 



ON the 23d day of July, 1864, Livingstone reached 
England; but he left it again on the 14th day of 
August, 1865. One sad event of this sojourn in England 
was the death of his mother, which ocurred on the 18th of 
June, 1865. The account below is taken from Livingstone's 
journal : 

"Monday, June 19th. — A telegram came, saying that 
mother had died the day before. I started at once for 
Scotland. No change was observed till within an hour 
and a half of her departure. Seeing the end was near, 
sister Agnes said, ' The Saviour has come for you, mother. 
Can you " lippen" yourself to him?' She replied, 'O yes/ 
Little Anna Mary was held up to her. She gave her the 
last look, and said, * Bonnie wee lassie/ gave a few long in- 
spirations, and all was still, with a look of reverence on her 
countenance. She had wished William Logan, a good 
Christian man, to lay her head in the grave, if 1 were not 
there. When going away in 1858. she said that she would 
have liked one of her laddies to lay her head in the grave. 

(351) 



352 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



It so happened that I was there to pay the last tribute to a 
dear, good mother." 

She had been a noble mother indeed, a mother in Israel ; 
and most precious was the memory left to her children. 

One of the very last things we find Livingstone doing in 
his own loved Scotland was attending the exercises of a 
school where his two youngest children were entered as 
pupils, and seeing them take prizes. He made a little talk 
to the children of the school, after much persuasion, in 
which he gave to them, among other things, this precept, 
begging them to make it the rule of their daily lives: "Fear 
God, and work hard" How eminently fitted he w 7 as to give 
this counsel — he who had made these same words the grand 
key-note of his own life! 

When Dr. Livingstone arrived in England the recent 
discoveries of Capt. Speke and Major Grant w r ere the theme 
of almost every tongue. These w r ere subsequently added to 
by the achievements of Capt. Baker, so that the people 
could talk about little else than the finding of the true 
sources of the Nile — the settling of the question that had 
perplexed the world for ages. But somehow, w r hile he had 
the deepest respect for all these gentlemen, and sincerely 
joined his countrymen in praise of their brave exploits, 
Livingstone felt that there must be an error somewhere. 
He did not believe that the head-waters of the Kile were 
so far north as Speke, Grant, and Baker had placed them, 
but was of the impression that they lay farther south, prob- 
ably in one of the many great lakes which, during his last 
explorations in Africa, he had heard of as lying between 
the Nyassa and the Victoria Nyanza. Livingstone had 
been told so much concerning a lake called Tanganyika 
that his curiosity to see it was great. He could not get the 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 353 



impression out of his mind that about this lake, should he 
ever succeed in reaching it, he would discover something of 
interest in regard to the Nile sources. One principal ob- 
ject of his return to Africa, then, was the desire to find this 
lake, if possible. An additional strong motive was the 
anxiety to settle the vexed question of the water-shed 
of that portion of Africa. Upon this depended to a great 
extent the final clearing up of the Nile mystery; for Liv- 
ingstone looked upon it as still a mystery in a certain sense, 
in spite of what Grant, Speke, and Baker had discovered. 
But doubtless the strongest motive of all — stronger, since 
it lay closer to his heart than either of the others — was the 
desire to do further missionary work among the yet unen- 
lightened inhabitants of the Dark Continent. He had 
never quite forgiven himself for letting the missionary 
merge so far into the explorer as to almost lose his iden- 
tity. Still, it had all been done with an eye single to the 
good of the wretched creatures whose interests were so 
closely allied to his own. We have seen why he was so 
anxious to open up this country to commerce, and how he 
had hoped and believed from the first that this would be 
the initial step in the advance of Christian missions. This 
idea had never left him, and was as strong with him now 
as when first formed in his mind; and this was why he had 
seemingly given up his mission work to engage in that of 
an explorer. He now determined, however, to combine 
both as much as possible. 

Livingstone went first to Paris, thence to Bombay, where 
he remained some little time perfecting arrangements, and 
then took passage direct to Zanzibar, the principal landing- 
place of most explorers starting into the interior. At Bom- 
bay he was joined by seven Zambesi men whom he had 
2, o > 



354 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



there on his way to England for the purpose of receiving 
instruction at the Government schools; also by two Shire 
valley boys, who had been connected with the mission of 
the lamented Bishop McKenzie, and who had been in Bom- 
bay for some time with the same object of the Zambesi men. 
Livingstone was well pleased to find that these two lads had 
not only learned to read but also to write, and that they 
had conducted themselves well during the entire school 
course. They were exceedingly anxious to be baptized into 
the English Church before their return to Africa. Feeling 
assured of their sincerity, Livingstone saw that the sacred 
rite was administered before their departure. Besides these, 
Livingstone added to his exploring party twelve Sepoys 
from Bombay, several Suahila lads from the Nassick School 
at Bombay, nine men from Johanna (one of the Comoro Isl- 
ands), and seven liberated slaves. The Johanna men were 
headed by a man named Musa, of whom we shall hear very 
unpleasantly after awhile. The Sepoys were to act princi- 
pally as guards, and for this purpose had been armed with 
Enfield rifles. To aid in the work of transporting the bag- 
gage and goods of the party, they had with them six cam- 
els, twelve buffaloes and a calf, two mules, and four don- 
keys. Ten bales of cloth and two bags of beads were also 
taken along to serve as currency, while several boxes of in- 
struments, a box of medicines, and many other useful arti- 
cles, completed the outfit. The question naturally arises, 
"What man but Livingstone would have encumbered him- 
self with such baggage and such a menagerie-like array of 
animals, and for what conceivable purpose except for the 
benefit of Africa?" No other one, certainly. These tame 
buffaloes of India were taken that he might try whether or 
not, like the wild buffaloes of the African plains, they would 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 355 



resist the bite of the deadly tsetse fly. For the same rea- 
son the camels were carried along. The mules and don- 
keys would have to take their chances. The latter he had 
seen get through very well on a previous occasion. 

The two deadliest native foes to the civilization of Africa, 
Livingstone knew only too well, were the fever and the tse- 
tse fly. Could he succeed in counteracting their fateful in- 
fluence, even in a small part, no expense or trouble within 
his power would be spared. He had already found in the 
African forests a remedy that had more than once proved ef- 
fective against the first dread evil. Might he not, therefore, 
hope to find in the camels and buffaloes unassailable substi- 
tutes for the oxen that so readily succumbed to the fatal tse- 
tse bite? Alas! he was not to know. Before leaving Zan- 
zibar he had the misfortune, from one cause and another, to 
lose nine of his buffaloes; and before he had proceeded far 
on his journey the remaining buffaloes and the camels had 
perished through the cruelty of some of the men who ac- 
companied him. 

At Zanzibar Livingstone was joined by two Shupanga 
men, Susi and Anioda; also by two Waiyau lads, Wikatani 
and Chuma. The Shupanga men had been wood-cutters 
for the " Pioneer, " the Waiyau lads among the slaves res- 
cued in 1861. They were all greatly attached to Living- 
stone, especially the faithful Susi, whose name from this 
time on is closely associated with Livingstone's, and who 
by one brave, beautiful deed of devotion has won the praise 
and admiration of the whole civilized world. 

Livingstone left Zanzibar on the 19th of March for the 
mouth of the Rovuma River. He found it very much 
changed since his last visit; so much so, in i'aet, that lie 
had to make a landing twenty-five miles above, and march 



356 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



overland to the banks of the river, regaining them at a point 
some miles from the sea. Here the expedition took a di- 
rect course down the river toward the Nyassa. It was a 
most fatiguing and trying march through an unfavorable 
country. Livingstone says of it : " The toil was fitted to 
w r ear out the strongest of my men." As to these men, they 
were no sooner started than they began to prove how tri- 
fling and troublesome they really were, especially the Se- 
poys and Johanna men. The Sepoys treated the animals 
with such cruelty that they were soon all dead. The Jo- 
hanna men proved to be great thieves. They not only 
stole from the boles of goods and the beads, to trade with 
the natives for such articles as their covetous souls desired, 
but they also stole the provisions of the little party as soon 
as they were procured. Altogether it was the very worst 
lot of men into whose hands Livingstone had ever fallen. 
How many times he longed for his loyal and brave Mako- 
lolo! Finally, after a four months' trial, Livingstone dis- 
missed some of the worst of the Sepoys and Johanna men, 
and sent them back to the coast. 

While passing through the,Waiyau country the Waiyau 
boys also deserted, under the pretense of having found their 
relatives. The little band was now so much reduced that 
when they reached Lake Nyassa, on the 8th of August, 
only the Kassick boys, the Shupanga men, two or three of 
the liberated slaves, and four of the Johanna men were left. 
Livingstone remained some little time at the L;ke, writing 
up his journals, and making both geographical and lunar 
observations. On trying to get across the lake to its west- 
ern boundary, in order to pursue his march in search of 
lakes Bangweolo and Tanganyika, Livingstone found that 
he could for no consideration procure a dhow, the kind of 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 357 



boat used on the lake, as they were all owned by the slave- 
traders, who were determined he should not cross if they 
could help it. But the intrepid man resolved to make the 
journey on foot around the southern end of the lake, and 
thus reach the western border by way of the land. It was 
a desperate venture, and no one but Livingstone would have 
undertaken it, with his little band reduced to a mere hand- 
ful of men, and almost destitute of supplies of any kind. In 
describing the experiences of the first stages of the journey, 
in a letter to his son, under date of August 28th, Living- 
stone says: "Food was not to be had for love or money. 
Our finest cloths only brought miserable morsels of the 
common grain. I trudged it the whole way, and having 
no animal food save what turtle-doves and guinea-fowls we 
occasionally shot, I became like one of Pharaoh's lean kine." 
Reaching the point at the southern end of the lake where 
the Shire issues from it, Livingstone was overcome by sad 
and painful reflections. He thought of the many expedi- 
tions he had made up this river; of the little mission sta- 
tion so hopefully planted in the central valley ; of the death 
of the lamented McKenzie; and hist, but far from being 
the least, the departure from earth to heaven of his beloved 
wife, and of her grave so far away under the shadow of the 
stately baobab-tree. Then came thoughts of the unhappy 
ending of the mission work at Linyanti. O how discour- 
aging seemed every thing in connection with the effort to 
plant mission stations in this heathen land! Had God 
failed to hear the cries of his people? Were these be- 
nighted souls to go on living in the pall-like darkness that 
shut out from their view every glimpse, every hope of the 
precious truths beyond? Ah, surely not, God had some 
good, some wise plan in it all. Livingstone would never, 



358 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



lose faith that such was the case, and would steadfastly be- 
lieve to the last that in his own time and in his own way 
God would send the answer to so many earnest, fervent 
prayers. O could he have lived ten years longer, to see 
how gloriously this thing came about! If his longing eyes 
could have looked upon the brave mission once more planted 

in the vallev of the Shire under the control of the noble 

«/ 

Bishop Steere! If he could have seen how grandly the 
work went forward — the work of " training the poor na- 
tives in the arts of civilization, rearing Christian house- 
holds among them, and proclaiming the blessed gospel of 
the God of love." 

Livingstone strenuously aimed at two things on this jour- 
ney around the southern end of the lake. One was to spread 
abroad the great truths of Christianity, and the other to 
awaken in the consciences of this degraded people a hor- 
ror of the atrocious slave-trade. At every opportunity he 
stopped to preach and to teach among them. 

Early in September they arrived at the town of Maren- 
ga, at the south-western corner of the lake. Here Living- 
stone was deserted by Musa and the remaining Johanna 
men, who left him with only a half-dozen Nassick boys and 
the two Shupanga men. Musa pretended to be greatly 
frightened at the intelligence brought to Marenga's village 
by an Arab slave-trader, that all the country in the direc- 
tion in which Livingstone's little party were heading was 
filled with dangerous and warlike Mazitu, the most blood- 
thirsty of the tribes in that section. In vain Marenga said 
to the men that the situation could not be half so bad as 
pictured, since he and his people had had no intimation of 
it; in vain Livingstone assured them that he intended giv- 
ing the Mazitu as wide a berth as possible. They had long 



_ 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 359 



wanted an excuse for leaving him and going back to the 
coast; besides, they were very cowardly, and they did fear 
an encounter with the Mazitu, though not in the degree 
they pretended. So in the time of his greatest need of 
them they left him almost alone, to fight his way as best he 
could through the inhospitable country beyond. Not only 
this, but they stole nearly every thing of any value that re- 
mained to him, even some of his instruments, the greater 
part of his stock of medicines, and all the cloth and beads 
that were left. He was now reduced to most desperate 
straits, and but for the kindness of some of the .tribes would 
surely have perished. 

In the meantime, Musa and the Johanna men, after con- 
siderable delay, had succeeded in reaching the coast. And 
now a most startling report began traversing the whole civ- 
ilized globe — a report that brought grief and consternation 
to the hearts of millions of admiring and sympathetic peo- 
ple. Dr. Livingstone, the devoted Christian missionary 
and fearless explorer, had been murdered by hostile tribes 
in the very heart of Africa ! The news of this startling ca- 
lamity had been brought to Zanzibar by one Musa and his 
companions, who had been of Livingstone's party ever since 
its departure for the interior, and who had also been with 
the missionary at the time of the reported murder, and there- 
fore eye-witnesses of the deed. The story told by Musa and 
his companions was substantially as follows: They — the Jo- 
hanna men — had followed Livingstone faithfully in all his 
wanderings until the north-western end of Lake Nyassa was 
reached. They had then started across the country in a 
south-westerly direction, when suddenly and without a mo- 
ment's warning they were attacked by a band of the blood- 
thirsty Mazitu. The little party, thus surprised, made what 



360 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTON K. 






defense it could, but they were so outnumbered by the ene- 
my tha; death for each one of them was only the question 

of a few moments. Seeing the state of affairs, Musa and 
what Johanna men were not already slain managed to es- 
cape into a thick jungle, where they were successful in se- 
creting themselves; but not before they had seen Living- 
stone's head nearly severed from his body by the ax of a 
Mazitu, who dealt him the deadly blow from behind. From 
the jungle the Johanna men, after experiences too fearful 
and harrowing to relate, had managed to make their escape 
to Zanzibar* 

This distressing story, substantiated as it was by Mug 
companions, was credited by all save a few of Livingstone's 
most intimate friends. They could not believe it. They 
thought it impossible for a man of Livingstone's caution 
and cool sagacity to have been caught in such a trap as 
this. But outside these few, whose hopes remained un- 
shaken to the last, the story, having now flown in every di- 
rection on electrical wings, was universally believed. What 
could be more probable? Even a man of Dr. Livingstone's 
well-known abilities was liable to be caught off his guard 
sometimes; and what was equal to the cruelty, the cunning, 
the blood-thirsty vindictiveness of the treacherous Zulus? 
This intelligence first reached England on March 7th, 1867. 
in the form of a dispatch sent by Dr. Kirke — Livingstone's 
old friend and fellow-traveler, who was now Tier Majesty's 
consul at Zanzibar — to the Eoyal Geographical Society. 
In making the announcement to the Society, Sir Eoderick 
Murchison, the president, said that while he did so with 
feelings of the deepest grief, it was nevertheless not with- 
out some lioj>e and belief that the story would prove un- 
true. A fortnight later Sir Eoderick declared, at a second 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 06I 

meeting, that his faith in the improbability of Musa's 
story had become only the more strengthened with the 

lapse of time. It was doubtless probable that Livingstone 
had been attacked by some hostile band, but that he had 
been slain he could not believe. His conviction was that 
Livingstone was somewhere in the interior, cut off from 
communication with his friends, and he hoped and believed 
a message would reach them after awhile. 

This opinion of Sir Roderick was shared by a few others 
of Livingstone's more personal friends. The rest of them, 
including the outside world in general, were of the belief 
that the brave explorer had indeed perished. He was but 
a man after all, therefore not invulnerable; and where in 
all Africa could be found a more cruel and blood-thirsty 
tribe than the Mazitu? Tie had said so himself in his book 
on the Zambesi ; and he had started from the coast with the 
intention of crossing their country in search of Lake Tan- 
ganyika. All the world knew that. Hence not only En- 
gland, but the whole civilized globe, was thrown into the 
sincerest mourning at news of his death — for dead they 
surely believed him. 

The newspapers now began publishing obituary notices, 
while letters of condolence daily poured in upon the ex- 
plorer's family. The loss of such a man at such a time, 
right on the threshold of the dorious work he had inaiiLiu- 
rated, Avas incalculable. All the world felt it, all the world 
bemoaned it. ' When had a man before accomplished so no- 
ble, so grand a work, and in so short a space? Would bis 
like ever be found again? These and many more such 
-lions were aski '1, while the regret and the sorrow at 
his untimely end continued. 

A stroi now arose in the hearts of Livin 



362 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



friends who still believed him alive to go in search of him. 
Though perhaps not slain by the dreaded Mazitu — as they 
fervently hoped he was not — he might nevertheless be in 
some place besieged by them, and cut off from all commu- 
nication with the outside world. If such was the case, the 
matter ought to be investigated at once. This feeling was 
shared and warmly encouraged by Sir Roderick Murchison, 
who had first presented the matter at a meeting of the So- 
ciety. This movement resulted in the sending out by the 
Society of a well-equipped search party under the command 
of Mr. E. D. Young, who had been with Livingstone in 
some of his explorations of the Zambesi. The party was 
furnished with a small vessel built almost entirely of steel, 
and so constructed that it could be easily taken apart, when 
each part formed a burden not beyond the average strength 
and endurance of an ordinarily strong and healthy man. 
It was owing to this ingenious construction of the boat that 
the exploring party was enabled to bear it by land around 
the Murchison Cataracts, and thus proceed on up the Shire 
to Lake Nyassa. 

The expedition left England on the 10th of January, 
1867, onboard Her Majesty's ship "The Celt," which an- 
chored safely in Table Bay on the 12th of July. Four 
days later the men were transferred to Her Majesty's ship 
" Petrel," and by her carried direct to the Kongone mouth 
of the Zambesi. On the 6th of August the steel vessel, hav- 
ing been put together and launched, started on its journey 
up the river. Exactly one month later it shot out into 
Lake Nyassa with flowing sails. Here Mr. Young for the 
first time received intelligence that left no doubt in his 
mind as to the untruthfulness of the report concerning Liv- 
ingstone's death. At this point they met an Arab slave- 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 363 



trader, who told them that instead of going round the 
northern end of the lake, as Musa had reported, Living- 
stone had made his way down to the southern end. This 
man had also recently seen and talked with the chief Ma- 
renga, at whose town Livingstone had been staying before 
he moved off in the direction of Lake Tanganyika. Ma- 
renga had informed the trader of the cowardly desertion of 
Livingstone by Musa and his companions, which was in 
turn repeated to Mr. Young. A little farther on this story 
was confirmed by the party meeting with two of the liberated 
slaves, w 7 ho had been with Livingstone after his desertion 
by Musa, and who had helped him carry his baggage some 
distance toward Lake Tanganyika. Having thus obtained 
the knowledge of Livingstone's safety up to a period much 
later than that given by Musa in his story as the date of 
the murder, Mr. Young and the expedition returned to En- 
gland. While he seemed perfectly satisfied with the work 
he had done, there were those who thought he had not car- 
ried it out as he ought to have done; that he should not 
have been satisfied with merely hearing that Livingstone 
was still alive, but that he ought to have pushed on until 
he came upon Livingstone himself. But doubtless Mr. 
Young had good and sufficient reasons for not pursuing 
this course, the chief of which was that he was not prepared 
for an expedition by land. 

Any further doubts that may have existed in regard to 
Livingstone's being alive, after the date assigned by Musa 
for his murder, were forever set at rest by the arrival in 
England, soon after the return of the expedition, of -a letter 
from the great traveler himself. It was addressed to his 
son Thomas, and bore the date of February, 1867— full live 
months after he had been said by Musa to have perished by 



364 l:fe of david Livingstone. 



the battle-ax of the fierce Mazitu. A few days later a let- 
ter from Livingstone, dated the same month, was received 
by Sir Roderick Murchison. Both of these letters spoke 
of the great explorer as in ordinary health, and as well 
started on his way in the direction of Lake Tanganyika. 
He had on the 15th of January crossed the Chimbwe 
River, and believed himself to be somewhere in the neigh- 
borhood of another great lake, of which he had recently 
heard much — Lake Bangweolo. 

Now followed a time of much doubt and anxiety among 
Livingstone's friends, as well as of speculation and deep 
concern to the world at large. For full seven months 
nothing more was heard of him, though all sorts of rumors 
in regard to him — first of his discovery, and then of his 
death — came thick and fast. Other expeditions to go in 
search of him were talked of, but nothing was settled definite- 
ly, though from time to time various supplies were sent by 
his friends to Zanzibar, with the hope that some way might 
be found to get them into the interior, perhaps to some place 
where he might come upon them. 

Early in the year 1868 another letter from the great ex- 
plorer arrived in England. It was dated December 14th, 
1867, and was addressed to a Mr. Seward. The intelligence 
conveyed in this letter was that he had somehow missed 
Bangweolo, and came instead upon a much smaller lake, 
Moero by name. He also stated that he had reached the 
edge of another lake, which he had every season to believe 
was the long looked-for Tanganyika, but which he had been 
unable to explore on account of sickness and the hostile 
state of the surrounding country. The letter closed by 
saying that he was on the point of starting again for the 
neighborhood of Lake Moero, where, he had strong grounds 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 365 



for believing, he would find something important in regard 
to the water-shed of that section. 

Following upon this letter there was another six months' 
of weary waiting, when in July, 1868, there came a batch 
of most interesting dispatches, all of which were dated "near 
Lake Bangweolo," and minutely and graphically detailed 
the great traveler's movements up to that time. After this 
another long silence ensued, a silence that filled the space 
of ten months, during which time all that was heard of 
Livingstone's movements was through a short letter to Dr. 
Kirke at Zanzibar, under date of May 30th, 1869. la July 
of the same year Dr. Kirke received another communica- 
tion which stated that Livingstone was then at Ujiji, on the 
north-eastern borders of Lake Tanganyika, and unable to 
proceed for the want of supplies. Intelligence of this be- 
ing at once conveyed to England, it created a profound 
sensation and a feeling of the most intense sympathy in 
Livingstone's behalf. One thousand pounds were at once 
subscribed by the English Government, which was supple- 
mented by a liberal sum from the Geographical Society and 
from the purses of many private friends. This sum was 
forwarded from England to Dr. Kirke at Zanzibar in June, 
1870, with instructions to fit out an expedition to go ::t once 
to Livingstone's relief. But now numerous delays occurred. 
More than six months passed away after the arrival of the 
money at Zanzibar, and still no expedition had 
though Dr. Kirke had from time to time rent suppli g 
the interior by private parties, principally through traders, 
hoping that they might chance in some way I Liv- 

ingstone. But the all-important point ivafi out uol 

onlv a supply party but a search party. Livingstone had 
so long in the heart of Africa, cut off from every th 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



pertaining to civilized life, that his friends were really grow- 
ing alarmed about him. Though much was said and much 
proposed, nothing was done, or seemed to have been done, 
until late in February, 1871, when Dr. Kirke at last had 
his party organized and ready to start from Zanzibar. 

In the meanwhile, during all these delays, there had been 
much talk in England of sending out a party direct from 
that point. This talk, however, resulted in no prompt ac- 
tion. Every one seemed willing to do, yet no one could 
arrive at any thing definite to be done. It now remained 
for America, with her usual pluck and dash, to come to the 
rescue, and to reverse the old fable of the hare and the tor- 
toise by sending the hare straight on to the race, while tho 
slow tortoise was only crawling about and making prepara- 
tions to start — or, what seemed to be preparations. Now, 
this is not meant as a reflection upon our English cous- 
ins. We know that Livingstone was appreciated in his 
own country, much more than it is generally given living 
genius to realize; nay, further, that his country loved 
and revered him, and that many honest efforts were made 
to have a party go in search of him, and to search until it 
had found him. The trouble was, they wasted too much j)re- 
cious time. It is almost needless to add that the American 
hare won, for all the world knows that it was Henry M. 
Stanley, the daring correspondent of the New York Herald, 
who found Livingstone in the heart of Africa when every 
other effort to reach him, had failed; and that the man who 
sent him was James Gordon Bennett, jr., the proprietor of 
that newspaper. 

In one of the biographies of Dr. Livingstone, written by 
a countryman, we find this somewhat candid confession: 
" No one appeared to hope for any thing from the expedi- 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 367 



tion sent out by the New York Herald, and gradually its 
existence came to be overlooked, or forgotten." No won- 
der, then, that the sleepy tortoise rubbed its eyes in genuine 
amazement when the news came that it was not the expedi- 
tion sent out from Zanzibar, nor the one which started later 
from England, that had found the great explorer in the 
heart of the Dark Continent, but the hitherto ignored 
expedition led by the almost unknown correspondent of an 
American journal. 

Mr. Stanley began his long and hazardous journey into 
the African interior about the beginning of March, 1871. 
But before giving some of the principal details of this ex- 
pedition, we wall go back and see just what Livingstone 
was doing all this time, and where he really was. 




(363) 



CHAPTER XXIV. 



SORE STRAITS — LOSS OF THE MEDICINE-CHEST — ACROSS THE CHIMB- 
WE AND CHAMBEZE — LAKE TANGANYIKA — MOERO — AT CAZEM- 
BE'S — ATROCIOUS CRUELTIES — MISSIONARY LABORS — THE START 
IN SEARCH OF LAKE BANGWEOLO — DESERTION OF THE MEN — 
RETURN FROM THE LAKE — ON THE ROAD TO U.TIJI — DISTRESS- 
ING ILLNESS — ACROSS LAKE TANGANYIKA — ARRIVAL AT UJIJI 
— DISAPPOINTMENTS — ANOTHER WEARISOME TRAMP — UJIJI 
AGAIN — LIVINGSTONE IS FOUND BY STANLEY. 



AFTER being deserted by Musa and the Johanna 
men, Livingstone pushed steadily on in the direc- 
tion in which he believed Lake Tanganyika lay. Though 
the story that he had been murdered was not true, the fear 
that he was in sore straits proved to be well-founded. He 
was not only harassed by savage foes, but he was half-starved 
and sick besides. For weeks at a time he had to subsist en- 
tirely on maize, which, he tells us, was the most tasteless 
and unsatisfying food. This was at the close of the year 
1 866. Although so reduced in body, and subjected to such 
physical tortures and deprivations, we find his patient, hope- 
ful, and courageous spirit still unquenchcd. That it was 
indeed the same old Livingstone — loving, gentle, submis- 
sive, full of faith, and steadfast— these words taken from 
his diary, and which were written by him during this trying 
period, unmistakably show: "We now end 1866. It. has 
not been so fruitful or useful as I intended. Will try to 
do better in 1867, and be better— more gentle and loving; 
and may the Almighty, to whom I commit my way. bring 
2i (360) 



370 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



my desires to pass, and prosper me. Let all the sins of '66 
be blotted out for Jesus' sake. May he who was full of 
grace and truth impress his character on mine : grace — ea- 
gerness to show favor; truth — truthfulness, sincerity, honor, 
for his mercy's sake." And here is an extract from a 
letter to his son Thomas, under date of February, 1867: 
" The people have nothing to sell but a little millet-por- 
ridge and mushrooms. Woe is me! good enough to pro- 
duce fine dreams of the roast beef of old England, but 
nothing else. I have become very thin, though I was so 
before ; but now, if you weighed me, you might calculate 
very easily how much you might get for the bones." Who 
but Livingstone could have written thus cheerfully — nay, 
humorously — under such circumstances? At the beginning 
of this year (1867) an additional calamity befell him— one 
more serious than any he had yet been called upon to en- 
dure. Through the dishonesty of one of his carriers he lost 
his remaining stock of medicines. As he was at the time 
suffering severely from an attack of the fever, we may well 
believe that the loss of the power of treating himself was in- 
deed, as one of his biographers declares, but "the beginning 
of the end." 

Leaving the country of the dangerous and blood-thirsty 
Mazitu well to the right, Livingstone passed on in a course 
almost directly due north. On the 15th of January the par- 
ty crossed the Chimbwe River. Here they had to wade 
through a marsh a mile wide, exclusive of the river. The 
Vv-ater was up to the arm-pits, and the footing was so treach- 
erous that two of the men came near losing their lives. Fif- 
ty miles farther north they came upon another fine river, 
which Livingstone found out was the Chambeze. He did 
not doubt that both of these rivers fell into the lake of which 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 371 



he had heard so much recently — Lake Bangweolo. He 
would therefore, he believed, have only to follow the course 
of these streams to find the lake. But as his search at pres- 
ent was for Lake Tanganyika he passed on over the rivers. 
In April he reached the southern end of a lake that he felt 
sure was the Tanganyika, though it was here known by the 
name of the Lieniba. As far as he could see it proved to 
be a magnificent sheet of water. The scenery in the vicin- 
ity was most striking — never had he seen any more pictur- 
esque or beautiful, while the little villages clustered here 
and there had an air of peace and hospitality rarely met 
with in this savage country. At this place Livingstone 
suffered from a severe and dangerous illness, which became 
all the more alarming through his utter inability to treat 
himself. Not so much as one small vial from his medicine- 
chest remained. When he had partially recovered he would 
have gone on up the lake but that he heard there was a 
very dangerous and hostile chief up that way who was kill- 
ing every one who dared to cross his country. Livingstone 
therefore turned in a direction due west from the lake, and 
made his way to the town of a friendly chief by the name 
of Chitamba. Here he remained for three months, when, 
having the opportunity to travel in the company of some 
very friendly Arab traders, he started off in the direction 
of Lake Moero, which he discovered on the 8th of Novem- 
ber, 1867. 

After staying in the neighborhood of this lake two weeks 
or so, and making many interesting geographical discoveries, 
Livingstone determined on going to the town of a chief by 
the name of Cazembe, of whom he had heard repeatedly, but 
at no time very favorably. Cazembe was represented by ev- 
ery one who had ever seen him as a fierce and cruel chief — 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



one, too, who seemed to take the greatest delight in seeing 
just how atrocious he could make his cruelties. He had a 
way of punishing his people for the most trivial offenses by 
cutting off their ears, and even their hands and feet. And 
yet it was also said of him that he had many fine qualities. 
He was exceedingly just and liberal with such of his people 
as never offended, and was quite hospitable to strangers. 
He had long since disregarded the title of chief, and was 
now known as King Cazembe; and in a most tyrannical 
way did he exercise his kingly prerogative. 

On Livingstone's arrival in Cazembe's town the king 
accorded him an impressive reception. It was somewhat 
like that given him years before by the hospitable Shinte, 
though Cazembe himself bore no resemblance whatever to 
the generous and warm-hearted Shinte. When Livingstone 
entered the place of council he found Cazembe upon his 
throne, and surrounded by all his chief men and body- 
guard. Livingstone had just taken his seat when one of 
the head men arose and made a long and flowery speech to 
the king, in which he gave a detailed account of Living- 
stone and of his plans. He said in conclusion that he was 
told that Livingstone had come to look for lakes and riv- 
ers. He could not understand what the white man wanted 
with such things; but he thought his object was a good 
one. After this harangue the king bade his guest approach, 
and asked him what he proposed to do. Livingstone told 
him that it was his intention to go farther south, where 
he had heard there were many lakes and rivers; then on 
again up into the north, where he had every reason to 
believe there were still more to be found. Cazembe was 
greatly puzzled at this, and shaking his head in a dazed 
kind of way, asked: " What can you want to go there for? 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 373 



The water is close here. Plenty of large waters are in this 
very neighborhood. Why do you want more?" Although 
the king was so greatly perplexed and mystified, and 
thought at first that Livingstone must surely be mad, he 
was nevertheless much attracted toward him, and gave or- 
ders that he should be well attended to while he remained 
in the town, and be allowed to go unmolested anywhere 
about the country he wished. 

Despite the many horrible things he saw here, and the 
atrocious cruelty of Cazembe as practiced toward his offend- 
ing people, Livingstone had a very restful and interesting 
stay at this place, and remained for some months. As his 
time and physical condition permitted, Livingstone preached 
to Cazembe's people. He would have liked above all things 
to make an impression for good upon the wicked old king, 
but somehow Cazembe seemed hard to influence; yet when 
the day came for Livingstone to take his departure he was 
not without hope that the words he had from time to time 
spoken had found lodgment within the chief's breast. Some 
months after Livingstone left the place he was greatly re- 
joiced to hear through a trader that Cazembe had almost 
entirely abandoned his former cruel mode of punishment, 
and now resorted to it only in extreme cases. ' So much for 
the silent power of noble and steadfast example; for Liv- 
ingstone's pure, beautifully consistent life had been more 
of a reproach to Cazembe than any thing else. There had 
not been so much in the words he had taught as in the life 
he had lived. O how this should encourage us to make 
our lives pure and clean and sweet! — not so much lor the 
good they will bring to us as for the aspirations they will 
awaken in the lives of others. Let this be our daily de- 
sire : 



374 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



May every soul that touches mine, 

By the slightest contact, get therefrom some good, 

Some little grace; one kindly thought, 

One aspiration yet unfelt, one bit of courage 

For the darkening sky; one gleam of faith 

To brave the thickening ills of life; 

One glimpse of brighter skies beyond the gathering mists, 

To make this life worth while, 

And heaven a surer heritage. 

Livingstone had for some time purposed going to Ujiji, 
on the north-eastern shore of Lake Tanganyika, where 
he hoped supplies and letters were awaiting him. He 
was completely worn out by the hardships of the long 
marches he had made. Besides, his system was all run 
down for the want of proper nourishment, as well as of 
medicine. For two years he had scarcely had any thing 
to eat but the coarse maize of the country, which had 
so broken his teeth that it was now with the utmost diffi- 
culty that he could chew at all. In all this time he had 
had neither tea, sugar, nor coffee, with the exception of a 
small supply of the two latter, given him by a friendly 
Arab trader while he was at Cazembe's town. Living- 
stone had therefore intended starting direct for Ujiji on 
leaving Cazembe's; but while there he had heard so much 
of the great lake, Bangweolo, that he determined to de- 
fer his journey to Ujiji until he should first go in search 
of the laks. This latter decision sorely discouraged his 
men. Like himself, they were worn down by the constant 
fatigues and hardships of the many marches about the coun- 
try in search of lakes and rivers — all of which seemed to 
them aimless. On the eve of the proposed departure for 
Bangweolo all except five of these men rebelled, and re- 
fused to stir a foot save in the direction of Ujiji. In his 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 375 



heart Livingstone could not blame them. It was no won- 
der they were tired of the " everlasting tramping,'' as he 
termed it, for he himself was sick of it. So he said noth- 
ing to them, but left them to pursue their own course. He 
reaped the reward of his mildness, for on coming back from 
the lake they every one eagerly rejoined him. 

Undaunted by the refusal of his men to accompany him, 
Livingstone set out in search of Lake Bangweolo with the 
mere remnant left to him, reenforced by a small detach- 
ment of Cazembe's people. On the 18th of July they came 
in sight of the great lake. Much to Livingstone's surprise 
he found its surface dotted with numerous small islands, 
nearly every one of w r hich was inhabited. The people on 
these islands were at first terror-stricken at Dr. Living- 
stone's appearance, taking him for some supernatural be- 
ing, they never having seen a white man before. However, 
he soon reassured them, and then they crowded about him 
in w r onder and curiosity. And now for many weary months 
Livingstone kept up his tramp, tramp, tramp about the 
borders of the lake, ever in search of the same all-absorb- 
ing object — any stream that might issue therefrom. At 
length when he came upon the Chambeze, at the point 
whence it flows from the lake under the name of the Lua- 
pula, he was confident he had found the southern feeder of 
the Nile. But alas! on the very eve of what seemed to 
him the unraveling of the great chain of mystery a link 
"turned up missing." On he went once more — on, on, in 
the ceaseless tramp that it now seemed to his disheartened 
men would never have an end. So many times did lie ask 
the wondering natives the same question, "Where is there 
another stream issuing from the lake?" and so many times 
did he go over the ground gone over before, that they 



376 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



really began to think him mad. No, he was not mad — only 
resolute and determined. But even his iron courage gave 
way at last — rather, the physical man began so to resent 
the abuses that had been heaped upon it that the mental 
man was finally forced to succumb. What, after all, had 
these tiresome tramps amounted to? Many, many things; 
though not the one thing for which he had so ardently hoped 
— the one thing that was to make the terrors of the way 
seem as nothing — the one thing that would be a joyful rec- 
ompense for all the horrors endured. He had found the 
southern end of the magnificent Lake Tanganyika, he had 
discovered the smaller Lake Moero, and now he had come 
upon the glorious waters of Bangweolo. From Lake Mo- 
ero he had found issuing the river Luapula, which flowed 
to that lake direct from Bangweolo, and he had found be- 
sides many larger and smaller streams that crossed and re- 
crossed the country like the threads of an intricate net- 
work. In addition, he had solved many mysteries; he 
had cleared up errors made by previous explorers ; he had 
added to the geographical knowledge of the country as no 
other man had done; still the one vexed question was yet 
unsettled — the mystery of the sources of the Nile: a myste- 
ry which Grant, Speke, and Baker believed they had long 
ago cleared up, but which some few, principally men of 
science — among them Livingstone — thought was not the 
case. 

Livingstone felt . confident that the sources of the Nile 
were south of all the lakes except Bangw T eolo. He believed 
that through the Luapula River he could dispel the myste- 
rv. He had seen it where, under the name of the Cham- 
beze, it ran into the eastern end of Lake Bangweolo; then 
whence it issued as the Luapula, flowing north by the town 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 377 



of Cazembe, and twelve miles below that town entering 
Lake Moero. On leaving Moero it passed on in a north- 
westerly course forming Lake Nylenge in the country west 
of Tanganyika. He had seen all this, and believed that he 
was at last about to solve the problem of ages. If he could 
but trace the Luapula to its mouth, then would the. missing 
link be connected with the chain of evidence. 

While at Cazembe's town Livingstone heard of a won- 
derful people who lived in a certain section of country 
called Rua, which lay to the north-west of Lake Moero. 
These people lived in under-ground villages fashioned by 
the hands of Nature, some of them being as much as thirty 
miles in length. Through these cunningly contrived caves 
flowed beautiful rills of water as clear as crystal. On the 
walls, which were in some places of solid marble, were in- 
genious drawings of men, animals, and of many other curi- 
ous things, said to be thousands of years old. The people 
themselves were a strange race, and practiced many cus- 
toms not known in any other part of the country. They 
were exceedingly well formed and graceful, especially the 
women; were not so dark as the generality of their dusky 
brethren, and had large, fine eyes, the outer angles of which 
slanted inward. Livingstone had a great curiosity to go 
and see this people, and determined to do so at no distant 
day, should life be spared to him. 

On the 11th of December, 1868, Livingstone started on 
the journey to Ujiji, where he hoped to fined supplies, and 
where he also hoped to pass a season of rest and build him- 
self up for what yet lay before him. He was sanguine of 
doing this, could he but get the proper medicines ami diet. 
A few days after starting on this journey he was Btricken 
by the severest illness he had yet experienced. He was 



378 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



unable to walk, and a litter was constructed by two of llie 
kind-hearted Arab traders in whose company he traveled, 
and on this he was borne in turn by four of his men. Though 
they were willing and faithful, and tried to carry him as 
carefully as possible, yet the way was so rough that every 
movement caused him excruciating pain. With the sun 
glaring hotly down upon his pallid face, the recurrent fever 
torturing his bodv, and a distressing cough that never left 
him day nor night, he was still cheerful and uncomplain- 
ing, and not once did a murmur escape his lips! He knew 
that his own spirit would influence that of his men, and he 
wished above every thing to keep them patient and cheer- 
ful. That he succeeded was attested by the happy bursts 
of song to which they often gave vent, sometimes in the 
midst of the most troublous conditions of the way. Though 
often so racked with pain that to speak many words was 
positive agony, Livingstone tried to say droll things to the 
men to get them to laugh — for, in his opinion, the man who 
can laugh never knows the sharp side of trouble. 

On the 26th of February, 18G9, the southern end of the 
great Lake Tanganyika was reached. Here Livingstone 
felt his spirits rise so that he was enabled to sit up in the 
canoe for much of the distance. It was a glorious journey, 
extending over more than two-thirds of the entire length of 
the magnificent sheet of water. The lake proved fully as 
beautiful as it had been described. The water was of a 
deep, serene blue that seemed to mirror all the rarer love- 
liness of the sky that arched above it. Livingstone gives 
this description of the southern end, known as Lake Liem- 
ba: "It lies in a hollow, with precipitous sides, two thou- 
sand feet down. It is extremely beautiful ; sides, top, and 
bottom being covered with trees and other vegetation. Ele- 



__ 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 379 



phants, buffaloes, and antelopes feed on the steep slopes, 
while hippopotami, crocodiles, and fish swarm in the wa- 
ters. It is as perfect a natural paradise as Xenophon 
could have desired. On two rocky islands men till the 
land, rear goats, and catch fish ; the villages ashore are 
embowered in the palm-oil palms of the west shore of Af- 
rica. Four considerable streams flow into Liemba; and a 
number of brooks, from twelve to fifteen feet broad, leap 
down the steep bright clay schist rocks, and form splendid 
cascades, that made the dullest of my attendants pause and 
remark with wonder." 

Ujiji was reached on the 14th of March. Here a bitter 
disappointment awaited Livingstone. All the goods and 
supplies he had expected — and much of which had really 
been sent here — had been stolen and scattered by the par- 
ties to whom they had been intrusted. But there was a 
cheering ray amidst all this gloom. Livingstone heard of 
other supplies at Unyanyembe, thirteen days' journey dis- 
tant. He resolved to go thither; but no sooner had he 
formed this resolution than he found it well-nigh impossi- 
ble to put it into execution. A fierce war Avas raging, and 
all the country was so torn up in consequence that an at- 
tempt to cross it was almost sure to be fatal. Only after 
making close inquiries, however, and finding what a dread- 
ful state of affairs really existed, did Livingstone abandon 
the idea of trying to make his way to Unyanyembe. 

Livingstone remained at Ujiji until the 12th of July, 
1869, when, in spite of his still weakened condition, he set 
off to explore the Manyuema country to the north-west of 
Lake Tanganyika — on the same old mission bent, clearing 
up the mystery of the head-waters < f the Nile. His one 
great object now was to trace the course of the Luapula 



380 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



River. At Barnbarre, the village of a chief by the name of 
Moenekuss, he was detained nearly six months by ulcers on 
the feet. His sufferings were intense, but he managed in 
that time to preach many sermons to the people, and to sow 
much precious seed. While at this village he heard again 
of the people of Rua. There was now the additional intel- 
ligence of wonderful fountains, near the remarkable caves, 
that leaped straight up from the earth with great impetu- 
osity to the distance of many feet. Livingstone pondered 
much over these fountains, and the more he thought of them 
the stronger grew his desire to have a sight of them. Per- 
haps they might in some way help him in the solution of 
the great mystery that had so long perplexed him. He heard 
of them again and again the deeper he penetrated into the 
Manyuema country, and by putting together first one thing 
and then another he at last came to the conclusion that 
these wonderful fountains could be no other than the far- 
famed fountains of Herodotus that lay between the sources 
of the two mighty rivers mentioned in ancient history, the 
one as flowing north to Egypt (the Nile), and the other 
south to a country that must be Ethiopia (the Congo), It 
made Livingstone's blood leap to think of it. Was the mys- 
tery of ages about to be solved at last? He would at least 
go and see. But first he must attend to the Luapula. 

Now began another long and fatiguing tramp through a 
country watered by many rivers — so many, in fact, that 
often Livingstone was misled by them — and traversed by a 
chain of lakes that formed one of the most magnificent wa- 
ter systems on the face of the globe. Hundreds of miles 
were gone over in this way; then, just as he believed him- 
self on the point of solving the mystery that had so long 
baffled him, his men refused to go a step farther. Threats, 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE, 381 



promises, appeals, persuasions, all alike failed. Weary, 
disappointed, sick in body and in mind, he was obliged to 
turn back and retrace his steps over a distance of more than 
five hundred miles. What made this even more dreadful 
was that he believed but one-fifth of that distance, perhaps 
less, lay between him and the finding of the lost link in the 
chain of evidence. O if some intimation could but have 
been given him then that it was the Congo sources he was 
so industriously following up, and not those of the Nile! 
He did not suspect it then, though to do him justice he 
did in the final days of his last long and wearisome search. 
The question, however, was left for others to prove conclu- 
sively — others who had the advantage of all his accurate 
and valuable estimates to help them. But no suspicion of 
the real truth of the matter had at this time entered his 
mind, and it was therefore with the keenest disappointment 
and regret that he found himself compelled to turn back. 
At one time he felt like going alone ; but that would have 
been sheer madness, as he soon realized. He would also 
have exercised to the last his authority over his men, but 
he said to himself: " I have no right to sacrifice these men 
if they do not wish to be sacrificed, for the country before 
us may be, as they declare, a wilderness of swamps and 
bogs — destitute, too, of food of any kind; and they may 
indeed all perish. I will therefore go back to Ujiji, as they 
urge me to do, and as my better judgment tells me it is best 
to do. There, doubtless, supplies have arrived by this time. 
I will go there, get my supplies, hire other people, and try 
it again." He went back once more to his old stopping- 
place, Ujiji, so utterly worn out with all these years of 
ceaseless tramping that he was more like a dead man than 
a live one. In body he was mere, skin and bone; his feet 



382 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



were covered with sores; he had no clothes to speak of, 
while his gray beard and hair gave him the appearance of 
an old, old man, when in reality he was only fifty-seven, in 
the prime of life. O how tired he was, and how he longed 
for rest and for some of the comforts of civilized life! How 
pathetic! All these things were to be again denied him, 
and the disappointments of this return were to be even 
keener than those of his first arrival. He had not more 
than laid his w r eary head down upon the mat in his hut 
when his men, who had gone out to investigate for them- 
selves, came back to him weeping bitterly. " What is the 
matter ?" he asked in alarm. " The things have been sent 
here for us," was the reply, "but Shereef [Dr. Livingstone's 
agent at this place] has made away with them all. He sold 
them for ivory, and now he has sent the ivory away to the 
coast. There is nothing left to us for all our hard serv- 
ices." And they began to cry afresh. Livingstone tried 
to comfort them as best he could. In the meantime he 
sent for Shereef. He came looking shamefacedly enough, 
though he tried to put a bold front upon it all. On being 
asked to give an explanation of his conduct, he declared 
that he had not acted until first assured of Livingstone's 
death. Shereef was a Mohammedan. He had sought the 
Koran for light. It had been told him that Livingstone 
was dead. He had then sold the goods to get pay for tak- 
ing care of them. Livingstone knew not what to do in a 
case of this kind. The most distressing part was his own 
needs and the pitiable condition of his men. Poor fellows! 
they did feel their loss keenly, he knew. They had served 
him faithfully and w*ell — barring that one exhibition of ob- 
stinacy, for which he could not really blame them — and it 
did seem very hard that they should have no reward for 



_ 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 883 



their services, especially when he had so many times re- 
vived their flagging spirits with pictures of what was await- 
ing them at Ujiji. And thus disappointed, hopeless, sick, 
destitute of even the commonest nourishments, robbed and 
defied by his agent, with his men clamoring for their pay, 
Mr. Stanley found him at last, and brought to him hope, 
joy, even life itself. 

To give a detailed account of even a few of the more 
prominent incidents of Stanley's search for Livingstone 
would be beyond the compass of our work, especially in its 
present dimensions. Suffice it to say that nearly every 
mile of the route fairly bristled with dangers, and that but 
for the cool-headedness and unflagging bravery of the man 
who led the expedition it is doubtful if it would ever have 
been successful. The difficulties were almost as great as 
the dangers, but each in turn was surmounted. At one 
or two points Mr. Stanley had literally to fight his way 
through hostile tribes. Once he was compelled to stop and 
build regular fortifications, behind which he lay for many 
days, not daring to stir a foot onward. He did not get out 
of some of these " tight places " without paying very dear- 
ly, as we may believe. But his losses — ten men, two horses, 
and twenty-seven asses in all — were really very light, when 
we remember what he had to encounter. 

Unyanyembe was reached on the 23d of June. We take 
up the narrative on the 10th of November, fifty-one days 
out from Unyanyembe, and on the eve of the little expedi- 
tion's approach to Ujiji. We will let Mr. Stanley relate 
what followed, in his own breezy and pleasant way: 

" November 10th, Friday.— The 236th day from Baga- 
moyo, and the 51st day from Unyanyembe, General di- 
rection to Ujiji, west-by-south. Time of march, six hours. 



384 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



It is a happy, glorious morning. The air is fresh and cool. 
The sky lovingly smiles on the earth and her children. The 
deep woeds are crowned in bright-green leafage; the water 
of the Mkuti, rushing under the emerald shade afforded by 
the bearded banks, seems to challenge us for the race to 
Ujiji with its continuous brawl. We are all outside the 
village cane-fence, every man of us, looking as spruce as 
neat, and happy as when we embarked on the dhows at 
Zanzibar, which seems to us to have been ages ago — we 
have witnessed and experienced so much. ' Forward ! ' 'Ay, 
Wallah; ay, Wallah, bana yango' [Yes, with God's help; 
yes, with God's help, our master] ; and the light-hearted 
braves stiide away at a rate winch must soon bring us 
within view of Ujiji. We ascend a hill overgrown with 
bamboo, descend into a ravine through which dashes an 
impetuous little torrent, ascend another short hill; then, 
along a smooth foot-path running across the slope of a long 
ridge, we push on as only eager, light-hearted men can do. 
In two hours I am warned to prepare for a view of Tan- 
ganyika, for, from the top of a steep mountain, the kiran- 
gozi says I can see it. I almost vent the feelings of my 
heart in cries. But wait; we must behold it first. And 
w T e press forward and up the hill breathlessly, lest the 
grand scene hasten away. We are at last on the summit. 
Ah! not yet can it be seen. A little farther on — just yon- 
der, O! there it is— a silvery gleam. I merely catch sight 
of it between the trees, and — but here it is at last! True — 
the Tanganyika! and there the blue-black mountains of 
Ugoma and Ukaramba. An immense broad sheet, a bur- 
nished bed of silvei -lucid canopy of blue above lofty mount- 
ains, are its valances; palm-forests form its fringes. The 
Tanganyika! Hurrah! And the men respond to the ex- 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 385 



ultant C17 of the Anglo-Saxon with the lungs of Stentors, 

and the great forests and the hills seem to share in our tri- 
umph. . . We are descending the western slope of the mount- 
ain, with the valley of the Liuche before us. Something 
like an hour before noon we have gained the thick mantctc- 
brake which grows on both banks of the river; we wade 
through the clear stream, arrive on the other side, emerge 
out of the brake, and the gardens of the Wajiji are around 
us — a perfect marvel of vegetable wealth. Details escape 
my hasty and partial observation. I am almost overpow- 
ered with my own emotions. I notice the graceful palms, 
neat plats, green with vegetable plants, and small villages 
surrounded with frail fences of mantetc-cane. We push on 
rapidly, lest the news of our coming might reach the peo- 
ple of Bunder Ujiji before we come in si ht, and are ready 
for them. We halt at a little brook, then ascend the long 
slope of a naked ridge, the very last of the myriads we have 
crossed. This idone prevents r.s from seeing the lake in all 
its vastness. We arrive at the summit, travel across and 
arrive at its western rim, and — pause, reader — the port of 
Ujiji is below us, embowered in the palms, only five hun- 
dred yards from us! At this grand moment Ave do not 
think cf the hundreds of miles we have marched, of the 
hundreds of hills we have ascended and descended, of the 
many forests we have traversed, of the jungles and thickets 
that annoyed us, of the fervid salt-plains that blistered our 
feci, of the hot suns that scorched us, nor of the dangers and 
difficulties now happily surmounted. At hist the sublime 
hour has arrived! — our dreams, our hopes and Anticipa- 
tions, are now about to be realized. Our hearts and our 
feelings are with our eyes, as we peer into the palms and 
trv to make out i:i which hut or house lives the white man 






LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



with the gray beard we beard about on the MalagarazL 
' Unfurl the flags, and load your guns/ 'Ay. Wallah; ay, 

Wallah, bana.' resp he men eagerly. - One, i 

three — fire! ' A volley from nearly fifty guns roars like a 
battery of artillery : we shall note its effect presently on the 
efutlooking village below. ' Now, kiraugozi, hold the 
white man's flag up high, and let the Zanzibar flag bring 
up the rear. And you men keep close together, and keep 
firing until we halt in the market-place, or the white 

man's house.' Before we had gone a hundred yards our re- 
ted volleys had the efieet desired. We had awakened 
Ujiji to the knowleo. that a caravan was coming, and 
the people w c re witnessed rushing up in hundreds to meet 
us. The mere sight of the flags inforn ry one imme- 

diately that we were a caravan ; but the American flag. 
borne aloft by gigantic Asmani. v ice was one vast 

smile on this day, rather stag ;ered them at first. However, 
many of the people who now approached us rememh 
the flag. They had seen it float above tie American Con- 
sulate and from the mast-head of many a .-hip in the har- 
bor at Zanzibar, and they were soon heard welcoming the 
beautiful flag with cries of 'Binder kisungu!' — a white 
man's flag; ■ Bindera Merikani!' — the American D _ 
Then we were. surrounded by them: by Wajiji, Wanyam- 
wezi, Warundi, AVaguhha, Wamanyuema, and Arabs, and 
were deafened with the sh 'Yambo, ya: 

bana ! Yambo, bana ! Yambo, bana ! ' To all and e 
of my men the welcome was given. We are now about 
three hundred yards from the village of Ujiji, and the 
se about me. Suddenly I hear a voice on 
my right say, 'Good-morning, sir. 1 tiring 

thi? _ _ in the m such a crowd of black people, 




Clll'M All AND SISI 



388 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



I turn sharply around in search of the man, and see him at 
my side, with the blackest of faces, but animated and joy- 
ous — a man dressed in a long white shirt, with a turban of 
American sheeting around his woolly head — and 'I ask, 'Well, 
who is this?' 'I am Susi, the servant of Doctor Living- 
stone,' said he, smiling, and showing a gleaming row of 
teeth. ' What ! Is Doctor Livingstone here? ' ' Yes, sir.' 
' In this village? ' Yes, sir.' 'Are you sure?' ' Sure, sure, 
sir. Why, I leave him just now.' ' Good-morning, sir,' 
said another voice. 'Halloo,' said I, ' is this another one?' 
'Yes, sir.' 'Well, what is your name?' 'My name is 
Chumah, sir.' ' What ! are you Chumah, the friend of We- 
kotani?' 'Yes, sir.' 'And is the Doctor well?' 'Not 
very well, sir.' ' Where has he been so long?' ' In Man- 
yuema.' ' Now you, Susi, run and tell the Doctor I am 
coming?' 'Yes, sir.' And off he darted like a madman. 
But by this time we were within two hundred yards of the 
village, and the multitude was getting denser, and almost 
preventing our march. Flags and streamers were out, 
Arabs and Wangwana were pushing their way through the 
natives in order to greet us, for, according to their account, 
we belonged to them. But the great wonder of all was, 
' How did you come from Unyanyembe?' Soon Susi came 
running back, and asked me my name; he had told the 
Doctor I was coming, but the Doctor was too surprised to 
believe him, and, when the Doctor asked him my name, 
Susi was rather staggered. But during Susi's absence the 
news had been conveyed to the Doctor that it was surely a 
white man that was coming, whose guns were firing, and 
whose flag could be seen; and the great Arab magnates of 
Ujiji — Mohammed bin Sail, Say d bin Majid, A bid bin Sul- 
iman, Mohammed bin Gharib, and others — had gathered 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 389 



together before the Doctor's house, and the Doctor had 
come out from his veranda to discuss the matter and await 
my arrival. In the meantime the head of the expedition 
had halted, and the kirangozi was out of the ranks, hold- 
ing his flag aloft, and Selim said to me: ' I see the Doctor, 
sir. O what an old man! He has got a white beard/ 
And I — what would I not have given for a bit of friendly 
wilderness where, unseen, I might vent my joy in some 
mad freak, such as idiotically biting my hand, turning a 
somersault, or slashing at trees, in order to allay those ex- 
citing feelings that were well-nigh uncontrollable? My 
heart beats fast, but I must not let my face betray my emo- 
tions lest it shall detract from the dignity of a white man 
appearing under such extraordinary circumstances. So I 
did that which I thought was the most dignified. I pushed 
back the crowds, and, passing from the rear, walked down 
a living avenue of people, until I came in front of the semi- 
circle of Arabs, in the front of which stood the white man 
with the gray beard. As I advanced slowly toward him 
I noticed he was pale, looked wearied, had a gray beard, 
wore a bluish cap with a faded gold band around it, had 
on a red-sleeved waistcoat and a pair of gray tweed trou- 
sers. I would have run to him, only I was a coward in the 
presence of such a mob — would have embraced him, only 
he being an Englishman, I did not know how he would re- 
ceive me; so I did what cowardice and false pride suggested 
was the best thing — walked deliberately to him, took off 
my hat, and said, ' Doctor Livingstone, I presume? ' ' Yes,' 
said he with a kind smile, lilting his cap; and we both 
grasp hands, and then I say aloud: ' I thank God, Doctor, 
I have been permitted to see you.' He answered: l J feel 
thankful that I am here to welcome you.' " 




(390) 



CHAPTER XXV. 

Stanley's description of Livingstone — examination of the 
northern end of lake tanganyika — the departure 
from ujiji— the separation at unyanyembe — news of 
the finding of livingstone — later reports of hjs death 
— reports confirmed — the last tramp — illness — last 
hours — death. 

UPON the events following Stanley's meeting with 
Livingstone, and covering Stanley's stay at Ujiji, 
we can touch but briefly. There was much to be told, 
much to be listened to, many eager questions to be asked 
on both sides. To Livingstone — who had been so long cut 
'off from the knowledge of home, friends, and of all civil- 
ized happenings — the coming of Stanley was like the fresh 
and invigorating breath of another world; the reviving of 
things that had long seemed dead ; the recalling of events, 
persons, and places which the way-worn traveler had thought 
never to hear of again. Over and over he said to Stanley: 
"You have brought me new life! You have brought me 
new life!" Long they sat and talked, heedless of the pass- 
ing time; and not until the gray dawn came stealing 
through the chinks of the little hut did they think of lying 
down to their brief rest. 

Stanley's description of Livingstone at this period cannot 
fail to be of interest, so we give it here: " Upon my lirst in- 
troduction to him, Livingstone was to me like a huge tome 
with a most upretending binding. Within, the work might 
contain much valuable lore and wisdom, but its exterior 

191) 



392 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



gave no promise of what was within. Thus, outside, Liv- 
ingstone o-ave no token — except of being rudely dealt with 
by the wilderness — of what elements of power or talent lay 
within. He is a man of unpretending appearance enough, 
has quiet, composed features, from which the freshness of 
youth has quite departed, but which retain the mobility of 
prime age — just enough to show that there lies much en- 
durance and vigor within his frame. The eyes, which are 
hazel, are remarkably bright, not dimmed in the least, though 
the whiskers and the mustache are very gray. The hair, 
originally brown, is streaked here and there with gray over 
the temples; otherwise it might belong to a man of thirty. 
The teeth alone show indications of being worn out: the 
hard fare of Louda and Manajenia have made havoc in 
their rows. His form is stoutish — a little over the ordina- 
ry height, with slightly bowed shoulders. When walking 
he has the heavy step of an overworked and fatigued man. ' 
On his head he wears the naval cap, with a round visor, 
with which he has been identified throughout Africa. His 
dress shows that at times he has had to resort to the needle 
to repair and replace what travel has worn. Such is Liv- 
ingstone externally/' 

After a season of rest, necessary to recruit their wasted 
energies, Stanley and Livingstone determined upon an ex- 
amination of the northern end of Tanganyika. The object 
of this was to settle definitely, if possible, the question that 
had so long perplexed Livingstone, whether or not the lake 
had an outlet at this point. The investigation was careful- 
ly and thoroughly made, but to the disappointment of both 
— especially so to Livingstone — it was found that the river 
Luzizi, instead of flowing out of the lake as Livingstone 
had supposed, flowed into it. This at once put an end to 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 393 



Livingstone's belief that the lake discharged itself in a 
northerly direction, and also to his favorite theory in re- 
gard to the Nile sources — at least such portion of it as was 
connected with this lake. 

Seeing how worn and wasted Livingstone was, and sur- 
mising how futile would prove this chase upon which he 
was still bent, Stanley tried to persuade him to return home 
with him; but in vain. The more the problem baffled Liv- 
ingstone, the more he determined to solve it. Much as his 
heart yearned for his home and friends — more especially 
for his dear ones — still unwaveringly did he stand by what 
he deemed a principle of duty. He had parted from the 
members of the Royal Geographical Society with the fixed 
determination and the promise to settle beyond a question 
of doubt, if possible, the latter theory — which not only he 
but many of them held — in regard to a more southerly sit- 
uation of the springs of the Nile than that given by Speke 
and Baker. They were all expectant — especially Sir Rod- 
erick Murehison, for whom Livingstone entertained the 
truest esteem — and sore indeed would be their disappoint- 
ment should he leave the great problem still unsolved, and 
that too upon the very eve of what seemed to him certain 
discovery. Besides, he had a personal interest in the solu- 
tion of the question — nay, a deep-laid, a sacred interest. 



v, 



for the Bible, and for all the events and places described 
therein. Feeling thus, he deemed it a religious duty to 
throw what light he could upon the mystery that had so 
long enveloped the majestic river upon whose placid bosom 
the infant Moses had floated, With his usual unselfish- 
ness and devotion, he took no thought of himself. What to 
him were the Hooded plains, the treacherous sponges of the 



394 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



swamps — nay, even the dread fever, or the still more terri- 
ble pneumonia, " worse than ten fevers? " Fortified 1)y the 
soul-inspiring knowledge that he was but following straight 
upon the line of duty, neither the thought of sickness nor 
of death had the power to turn him from his course. But, 
knowing Livingstone so well, we may believe that even a 
higher and nobler purpose than this actuated him. More 
and more, the farther he advanced into the country, had 
he witnessed the dread horrors of the slave-trade. No won- 
der he came to designate it the " open sore of the world," 
and to call down God's richest blessings upon all who would 
endeavor to heal it — be lie ''American, English, or Turk." * 
His own brave words also give us the key-note to another 
and higher motive that swayed him : "No one can estimate 
the amount of God-pleasing good that will be done, if by 
divine favor this awful slave-trade, into the midst of which 
I have come, be abolished. This will be something to have 
lived for, and the conviction has grown into my mind that 
it is for this end I have been detained so long." And again 
he says, under date of December, 1872: " If the good Lord 
permits me to put a stop to the enormous evils of the in- 
land slave-trade, I shall not grudge my hunger and toils. 
I shall bless his name with all my heart. The Nile sources 
are valuable to me only as a means of enabling me to open 

*The expression from which these words are quoted occurs in a 
letter to Mr. James Gordon Bennett, of the Neiv York Herald, under 
date of May 1st, 1872, and is as follows: "All I can add in my lone- 
liness is. May Heaven's rich blessings come down on every one — 
American, English, or Turk — who will help to heal the open sore 
of the world." The words were afterward rendered. memorable by 
being inscribed upon Dr. Livingstone's monument in Westminster 
Abbey. 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. o95 



my mouth with power among men. It is this power I hope 
to apply to remedy an enormous evil, and join my poor lit- 
tle helping-hand in the enormous revolution that in his all- 
embracing providence he has been carrying on for ages, 
and is now actually helping forward." Speaking of the 
unwillingness of the natives to believe in the true purpose 
of his investigation, he further adds: "They all treat me 
with respect, and are very much afraid of being written 
against; but they consider the sources of the Nile to be a 
sham; the true object of my being sent is to see their odi- 
ous system of slaving, and if indeed my disclosures should 
lead to the suppression of the East Coast slave-trade, 1 would 
esteem that as a far greater feat than the discovery of all the 
sources together. It is awful, but I cannot speak of the 
slaving for fear of appearing guilty of exaggeration. It is 
not trading; it is murdering for captives to be made into 
slaves." 

Now we know why, in spite of his intense longing for 
home and loved ones, he turned away from them and pur- 
sued the duties that lay before him in benighted Africa. 
We have seen him tried in the old days at St. Paul de Lo- 
anda, and by this time we know 7 him too well to believe 
that he would have thought of returning home, especially 
when the fulfillment of his great object seemed so near. 
Yet what a good excuse he would have had for leaving 
this unfriendly clime. He was worn down both in mind 
and body. All his vital force seemed exhausted by the 
desperate strains that had been put upon them. He was 
but a shadow of his former self. It gave him absolute pain 
to attempt to walk even a mile. Nevertheless, he staid at 
his post, heroically enduring trials sufficient to have dis- 
mayed the stoutest heart. 



>96 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 






It was finally agreed that Dr. Livingstone should ac- 
company Stanley on his return as far as Unyanyembe. 
There he was to obtain such supplies as had been sent to 
that place for him, supplement them with a liberal portion 
of Mr. Stanley's — which the latter generously insisted that 
he should take — and remain to perfect further arrange- 
ments and until the arrival of the men Stanley was to send 
him from the coast. Stanley had assured him that these 
men should be both able and trusty, so that there would be 
no further danger of his being placed at the mercy of cow- 
ards and thieves. 

The parting scene between Stanley and the great travel- 
er was most pathetic. It is best given in Mr. Stanley's own 
feel in g words: " We had a sad breakfast together. I could 
not eat, my heart was too full; neither did my companion 
seem to have any appetite. We found something to do 
which kept us longer together. At eight o'clock I was 
not gone, and I had thought to be off at 5 a.m. ' Doctor,' 
said I, ' I will leave these two men with you, who will stop 
to-day and to-morrow with you, for it may be that you have 
forgotten something in the hurry of my departure. I will 
halt a day at Tura, on the frontier of Unyamwezi, for your 
last words and your last wish; and now we must part — 
there is no help for it. Good-by.' ' O, I am coming with 
you a little way. I must see you off on the road.' * Thank 
you. Now, my men, Home! Kirangozi, lift the flag, and 
march/' The house looked desolate — it faded from our 
view. Old times, and the memories of my aspirations and 
kindling hopes, came strong on me. The old hills round 
about, that I once thought tame and uninteresting, had be- 
come invested with histories and reminiscences for me. On 
that burzaui I have sat hour after hour, dreaming, and 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 397 



Loping, and sighing. On that col I stood watching the 
battle and the destruction of Tabora. Under that roof I 
have sickened and been delirious, and cried out like a child 
at the fate that threatened my mission. Under that ban- 
ian-tree lay my dead comrade, poor Shaw! I would have 
given a fortune to have had him by my side at this time. 
From that house I started on ray journey to Ujiji; to it I 
returned as to a friend, with a newer and dearer compan- 
ion ; and now I leave it all. Already it all appears like a 
strange dream. We walked side by side; the men lifted 
their voices in a song. I took long looks at Livingstone, to 
impress his features thoroughly upon my memory. ' The 
thing is, Doctor, so far as I can understand it, you do not 
intend to return home until you have satisfied yourself 
about the "sources of the Kile." When you have satisfied 
yourself, you will come home and satisfy others. Is it not 
■so?' ' That is it, exactly. When your men come back I 
shall immediately start for Ufipa; then, crossing the Rung- 
wa River, I shall strike south, and round the extremity of 
Tanganyika. Then a south-east course will take me to 
Chicumbi's, on the Luapula. On crossing the Luapula, I 
§hall go direct west to the copper- mines of Katanga. 
Eight days south of Katanga, the natives declare the fount- 
ains to be. When I have found them I shall return by 
Katanga to the under-ground houses of Kua. From Use 
caverns, ten days north-east will take me to Lake Kair.o- 
londo. I shall be able to travel from the lake, in your boat, 
up the river Lufira to Lake Lincoln. Then, coming down 
again, I can proceed north by the Lualaba, to the fourth 
lake — which, I think, will explain the whole problem; and 
I will probably find that it is either Chowatnbe [Baker's 
lake], or Piaggia's Luk/.' 'And how long do you think 



398 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



this little journey will take you?' 'A year and a half, at 
the farthest, from the day I leave Unyanyembe.' ' Yes, 
that will do excellently well. Now, dear Doctor, the best 
friends must part. You have come far enough, let me beg 
you to turn back.' ' Well, I will say this to you : you have 
done what few men could do — far better than some great 
travelers I know. And I am grateful to you for what you 
have done for me. God guide you safe home, and bless 
you, my friend.' 'And may God bring you safely back to us 
all. My dear friend, farewell ! ' ' Farewell ! ' We wrung 
each other's hands, and I had to tear myself away before I 
unmanned myself; but Susi and Chumah and Hamoydah 
— the Doctor's faithful fellows — they must all shake and 
kiss my hands before I could quite turn away. I betrayed 
myself! 'Good-by, Doctor — dear friend!' 'Good-by!' 
'March! Why do you stop? Go on! Are you not going 
home?' And my people were driven before me. No more 
weakness. I shall show them such marching as will make 
them remember me. In forty days I shall do what took 
me three months to perform before." 

The news of Stanley's finding Livingstone in the very 
heart of Africa sent a thrill through the whole civilized 
world. It was indeed most joyful and welcome intelligence, 
and the manner of its reception, irrespective of persons or 
of nations, fully demonstrated the firm hold the great ex- 
plorer had upon the hearts of the people everywhere. But 
alas! in little more than a year from the time of Stanley's 
parting with him at Unyanyembe the world was again 
startled by the report of the great traveler's death. This 
time it seemed too well authenticated to admit of doubt, 
yet there were those who hoped against hope to the last 
that the tidings were untrue. He had been reported dead 






LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 399 



so often, might not this report too be a mistake? In a short 
while the news of his death was confirmed by a full state- 
ment of the manner of it, received through official sources, 
together with the information that the body was even at 
that time being borne across the country in the direction 
of the coast by his faithful attendants. 

Of the particulars of Dr. Livingstone's last illness and 
death we are enabled to give what is generally conceded to 
be a most accurate account, thanks to the intelligent nar- 
ratives rendered by his devoted body-servants, Susi and 
Chumah, and to the clear and concise style of the manu- 
scripts of Jacob Wainwright, who was the scribe of the 
party. 

After Stanley's departure, Livingstone remained at Un- 
yanyembe until the arrival of the promised men on the 9th 
of August, 1872. On the 25th of August the little expedi- 
tion began its movement, though Livingstone was in no 
condition to travel and suffered pain at almost every step. 
The men sent by Stanley proved in every respect as they 
had been rep resented, and were indeed a blessing to Liv- 
ingstone. Among them were John and Jacob Wainwright, 
who had been educated at the Nassick School at Bombay, 
and Manwa Lera, a trusty and capable half Arab and half 
native, who had charge of the caravan. Out of the abun- 
dance of his grateful heart Livingstone thus wrote to Stan- 
ley: "I am perpetually reminded that I owe a great deal 
to you for the men you sent. With one exception the par- 
ty is working like a machine. I give my orders to Manwa 
Lera, and never have to repeat them." O if he could but 
have had such a company before! 

On the 8th of October they reached Tanganyika. Liv- 
ingstone's condition had by this time become exceedingly 




mm 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE, 401 



distressing, as lie now had dysentery in its most aggravated 
form. But he kept up bravely, daily endearing himself 
more and more to his men by the sunny cheerfulness of his 
temper and the constant display of a patience and resigna- 
tion that seemed to them most remarkable. After a brief 
rest at Tanganyika, the march was resumed, and went on 
steadily, though slowly, with but few interruptions and 
with very little incident. As the fall advanced the rainv 
season set in ; the streams became so swollen that they were 
often unfordable, and the swamps were in such a condition 
that crossing them was at the risk of life; but still the dar- 
ing company pushed on. By the end of the year they had 
reached and crossed the river Chamheze. Christmas-day, 
1872, was spent not far from its banks. Livingstone's en- 
try in his journal on this occasion was characteristic: "I 
thank the good Lord for the good gift of his Son Jesus Christ 
our Lord," In the second week of January, 1873, they 
drew near the south-eastern end of Lake Bangweolo. Here 
the reign of old winter became more furious. It was un- 
usual for Livingstone to meet in this climate with such cold 
and piercing winds, such chilling downpours of rain. The 
streams became more and more treacherous to cross, the 
water stretching out for miles and miles into the swamps. 
Often his faithful men were for hours up to their chins in 
the cold and slimy bogs. They would never suffer him to 
attempt the passages himself, but carried him over — some- 
times upon their shoulders, sometimes upon their heads, ac- 
cording to the depth of the current. 

Though suffering greatly, Livingstone had the will to 

look about him carefully and to note the different phases 

of the forests through which they passed. Thus he was 

often rewarded by the sight of many beautiful wild flowers, 

26' 



402 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



which here and there peeped from their nooks in spite of 
the forbidding weather: "marigolds; a white jonquil-look- 
ing flower without any smell; many orchids; white, yellow, 
and pink asclepias, with bunches of French-white flowers; 
clematis — Methonica gloriosa, gladiolus, and blue and deep 
purple polygamias; grasses with white, starry seed-vessels, 
and spikelets of brownish red and yellow. Besides these 
there were beautiful blue flowering bulbs, and new flowers 
of pretty, delicate form and but little scent.'' The weather 
grew worse and worse; the inhabitants of the villages 
through which the travelers passed not only refused them 
food, but purposely misled them as to the route. Hunger 
in its sharpest form assailed them. For days they were 
literally without any thing to eat. The men were driven 
to the verge of despair, while Livingstone's sufferings were 
far beyond any previous experience. But for the real no- 
bility of character of the men by whom he was now sur- 
rounded, and the bond of strong affection by which they 
had become united to him, " unexampled in the history of 
difficult expeditions,'' every one of them would surely have 
deserted him and fled. 

All this hard usage was enough to have worn out a con- 
stitution of iron. It is no wonder, then, that Livingstone, 
despite his great powers of endurance, succumbed at last, 
and that the end of his mortal journey was very near. At 
that critical time, however, upheld by his old heroic spirit, 
he wrote in his journal: " Nothing earthly will make me 
give up my work in despair. I encourage myself in. the 
Lord my God, and go forward." On the 21st of April a 
change so alarming occurred that even he was warned by 
it that the work might after all be left unfinished by him. 
Still, he gave no hint of this to his companions. On that 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 403 



same day he wrote in his journal, in a hand so shaky that 
it was afterward read with much difficulty: " Tried to ride, 
but was forced to lie down, and they carried me back to the 
village exhausted. " At length, on the 27th day of April, 
1873, they came to the banks of the Molilamo River, near 
to the village of a chief by the name of Kalunganjovu. 
Here outraged nature seems to have resented with grim de- 
termination the many heavy drafts drawn upon her pre- 
cious store. Livingstone was unable to bear the torture 
of proceeding farther. The entry in his journal of this 
date forms the last lines his fingers ever penned : " Knocked 
up quite, and remain — recover — sent to buy milch-goats. 
We are on the banks of the R. Molilamo." 

From this point we have to rely solely upon the narra- 
tives of his men, for the hand that had traced so many 
brave and thrilling words, that had recorded with such 
faithfulness every event of his wonderful and checkered 
life, was now growing pulseless in the cold clasp of death. 
It was soon evident to his men that he was very, very ill — 
though they could not believe that he was nearing the end. 
Kalunganjovu's people were very kind to them, the chief 
being especially solicitous as to the condition of the man of 
whom he had heard so much and always so well. He at 
once sent to Livingstone a present of a kid and three bas- 
kets of ground-nuts. The men were rejoiced when they saw 
these edibles. Having been many days without nourishing 
food of any kind, the anxious and devoted fellows believed 
that Livingstone's low condition was in a great part due to 
this lack of sustenance. They prepared the kid for him 
after the most tempting manner known to their culinary 
art, and pounded the ground-nuts and baked them into 
cakes. But after all their kindly efforts he could not par- 




(404) 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 405 



take of a morsel of the food. This greatly distressed and 
alarmed them, and for the first time they began to entertain 
serious apprehensions of his condition. 

Livingstone, beibre he grew so seriously ill, had especial- 
ly desired to reach the village of a chief by the name of 
Chitambo, in Ilala, at the southern extremity of Lake Bang- 
weolo. His men now determined to carry him on to that 
point if possible. Livingstone himself was anxious that 
this should be done, and after a day or two of rest expressed 
his belief that he could stand the journey. Kalunganjovu 
readily consented to furnish the canoes. He declared that 
every thing in his power should be done for his friend Liv- 
ingstone. The arrangements were soon perfected, and the 
faithful men ready to set out with their precious burden. 
On Susi's going to the hut to inform his master that every 
thing was in readiness for the start, Livingstone called him 
nearer, and told him that he was quite unable to walk to 
the door in order to meet the kitanda (the kind of litter on 
which they had been carrying him). He further suggested 
that the side of the hut be taken out, as the door was too 
narrow to admit of the passage of the kitanda. This was 
done; he was gently lifted from the bed, placed upon the 
kitanda, and borne out of the village. The most difficult 
part of the journey now presented itself— that of the pas- 
sage of the river; for the canoes were not wide enough to 
allow the kitanda to be deposited at the bottom of any one 
of them. As to sitting up in the canoe, Livingstone was 
powerless to do that; and at first there seemed no way oi' 
preparing for him to lie down without danger of upsetting 
the canoes. However, a bed was at last arranged in the 
bottom of one of them. Then came tin 4 painful and diffi- 
cult task of lifting him from the kitanda to the canoe; but, 



406 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



thanks to the skill and gentleness of the men, this was ac- 
complished, though many groans had been wrung from the 
sufferer. The river crossed, then came innumerable swamps 
and plashes. When they reached any thing like a dry spot, 
the poor man would beg them piteously to lay him down, 
if only for a few moments. At last Chitambo's village in 
Ilala was reached, and here the men were forced to place 
him under the eaves of a house during a drizzling rain 
while a hut was being prepared for him. It was evident, 
from after circumstances, that this exposure helped to 
hasten his death. Numbers of Chitambo's people ap- 
proached, and, leaning upon their spears, looked with sor- 
rowful faces upon the pitiable condition of the man whose 
praises they had heard sounded for so many years. Anon 
he would open his eyes to behold them, for he was too weak 
to do more than this or to turn his head feebly from side to 
side. But the old-time fire of the eyes remained unquenched, 
although the death-film was creeping on apace. As his gaze 
rested upon their wondering and pitying faces, every now 
and then words would escape his lips — words spoken to the 
glory of that Master whom he had so long and so faithfully 
served, and from whom he was soon to receive the plaudit, 
"Well done/' 

At length the hut was finished, and the dying pilgrim 
was borne to it and laid upon a bed that was raised from 
the floor by means of poles and covered with soft, thick 
grass. A fire was then lighted on the outside, nearly op- 
posite the door, and the boy Majwara, who slept just on 
the inside of the door, attended to his master's wants at 
night. During the day Susi, Chumah, Amoda, Matthew, 
and the two Wainwrights, remained with him in turn, as 
was their usual custom. 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 407 



The next day Chitambo came early to pay his respects 
to Livingstone. After speaking to the chief for a few mo- 
ments, Livingstone found himself in such pain that he was 
obliged to send him away, asking him to call again on the 
morrow, when he hoped to have the strength to talk to him. 
The men kept watch in detachments beside the fire in front 
of his door. 

About eleven o'clock that night Susi, who had gone to 
his hut to get a little rest, was summoned to his master by 
the boy Majwara. At the same time mingled sounds of 
noisy shouts and cries were heard in the distance. "Are 
those our men making that noise ?" Livingstone asked Susi 
as soon as he stood beside him. " No, master/' Susi replied. 
" It is Chitambo's people frightening away a buffalo from 
their dura-fields." A few moments later he said in lower 
tones, and with his mind evidently wandering, " Is this the 
Luapula?" " No, master," the faithful Susi again made 
answer. " It is Chitambo's village, near to the river Mo- 
lilamo." He once more lapsed into silence, and Susi thought 
he was sleeping. But again he appeared to arouse himself, 
and asked, this time in Suaheli: " Sikun' gapi kuenda Lu- 
apula?" [How many days is it to the Luapula?] " Na 
zani zikutatu, Bwana " [I think it is three days, master], 
replied Susi. He closed his eyes for a few moments, then 
opened them quickly, and exclaimed as though in great 
pain, "O dear! O dear!" In a little while he had dozed 
off again, and fearing to disturb him Susi withdrew. It 
was an hour or so later that Majwara came again to sum- 
mon Susi to his master with the words: "Bwana wants 
you, Susi. There is something wrong with him.'' On Su- 
si's reaching the side of the bed Livingstone spoke to him 
in a feeble but quite clear voire. Ho wished to have some 




(408) 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 409 



water boiled. Taking the copper kettle, Susi went to the 
fire on the outside, and soon returned with the vessel steam- 
ing. Calling him nearer, Livingstone asked him to bring 
his medicine-chest, and to hold a candle that was burning 
some distance away closer to the bed. As Susi did so he 
noticed that the Doctor could scarcely see, but was grop- 
ing about in the dark. After much difficulty, even with 
Susi's help, Livingstone finally selected the calomel he 
wanted, which he told Susi to place at his side. He then 
directed him to pour a little water into a cup and to set 
another empty one beside it. As the faithful servant did 
as he was requested, Livingstone glanced up at him grate- 
fully for a few T moments; then, closing his eyes with a si- 
multaneous expression of the lips that showed he was in 
deep pain, he said in a voice that the observant Susi re- 
marked was much feebler than when he had first addressed 
him on his entrance to the hut. "That is all right; you 
can go now." These Avere the last words Livingstone was 
ever heard to speak. 

About four o'clock the next morning — given by some as 
the first of May, by others as the fourth, though now gen- 
erally conceded to be the latter date — Majwara came run- 
ning to Susi once more, this time with the frightened en- 
treaty: "Come to Bw T ana, O do please, Susi! I am afraid ! 
I don't know if he is alive!" The genuine alarm of the 
lad caused Susi to run to arouse the other head-men — 
Chumah, Matthew 7 , Chowpere, the two Wainwrighte — and 
all. The men w r ent to the hut at once, fearing the worst. 
As they entered their eyes beheld what they were not soon 
to forget. Livingstone was not lying on the bod, as they 
had expected, but was kneeling beside it, apparently on- 
gaged in prayer. For a moment they drew back in rev- 



410 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE, 



erent silence, fearing to disturb him. They all believed 
him alive and engaged in his devotions as usual, and were 
on the point of retiring from the hut when Majwara, who 
knew better than they, whispered: " There is something 
wrong with Bwana, I am sure. Do not go like this until 
you have found out what it is. When I lay down he was 
just as he is now, and it is because I find that he does not 
move that I fear the worst has happened — that he is dead, 
the good master is dead ! " " How long has he been like 
that?" the men questioned, still believing that he was but 
kneeling at prayer, so natural was his position. " I do not 
know; for a considerable time, I am sure," the lad replied. 
Apprehensive that something was indeed wrong, the men 
now drew near. The candle that still burned beside the 
bed, though feebly because of the accumulated drippings 
of tallow and the sputtering wick, yet shed sufficient light 
for them to see distinctly every outline of the kneeling fig- 
ure. He was full upon his knees at the bedside, his body 
bent only slightly forward, his hands stretched upward 
over the pillow and clasped, his head upon his hands. 
Bending down beside him, his attendants listened closely 
for a few seconds. He was perfectly motionless ; there was 
no sign of breathing. Then one of them, Matthew, bent 
still nearer and placed his hand upon his master's cheek. 
The touch was sufficient, the coldness such as to convey to 
him at once the painful realization that the spirit had fled, 
and that his good and noble master was indeed no more. 
In the still watches of the night, while' they slept and took 
no heed, the dread messenger had come — but, coming, had 
not found him unprepared. With a superhuman effort he 
had gathered up the strength that was still left to him, 
arisen from bed, and placed himself in that reverential at- 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 411 



titude which he had so often declared was the only genuine 
expression of the devout spirit of prayer — upon his knees. 
And thus had the messenger found him, as he had so longed 
and prayed it should find him, as a soldier at watch upon 
the battlements. Yes, death had indeed come to him, and 
his toil-worn and weary spirit was rejoicing in the beauties 

of that land 

Where peaceful rivers, soft and low, 
Amid the verdant landscape flow. 

Gone forever now, like a harrowing dream that has been 
and is no more, was the pain, the suffering — the rackings 
of the dread fever, the awful horrors of the African swamps, 
the tortures of the blistering African sun. No more weary 
miles to go over; no more bleeding feet to drag painfully 
along where sharp stones cut them and cruel thorns pierced 
them at almost every step; no more icy floods to breast; no 
more gnawings of hunger, nor maddening thirst. Rest, 
rest had come to him at last, and he had met it with a 
smile upon his face — such a smile as we see upon a tired 
baby's face when its weary head sinks to rest within its 
mother's arms. 

Denth came; but deatli could not surprise 

Ilim who had watched each day with prayer, 
Waiting with longing eyes 

To show his Lord a faithful servant's care. 
When called the bridegroom and his friends to meet. 

No oil to buy, no labor to begin; 
With burning lamp, girt loins, and peace-shod feet, 

Thus hand in hand, through death lie entered in, 
And found a bridal garment and a seat. 

lie had died upon his knees — the last utterances of his pal- 
lid lips were words of prayer. For whom or for what had 
those last agonized entreaties gone up? Surely not for him- 



412 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



self, since between him and that God whom his eager soul 
had hastened so gladly to meet all peace had long, long ago 
been made. Were they, then, for his home, his friends, his 
dear ones, the loved children his precious wife had left to him ? 
Did he invoke God's blessings upon the fond faces he was 
never more to see on earth, the bright eyes that were never 
more to grow glad at his coming, the tender lips whose last 
pressure had been laid upon his own? Did he, as in the 
old days at Linyanti, when he had prayed the Almighty 
Power to have in his keeping the dear ones so far away, to 
be " a husband to the widow for Jesus' sake," now entreat 
that same sleepless care, that never-relaxing watchfulness 
for those so soon to be left fatherless? Ah, surely, surely 
this he did ! But in the stillness of that midnight hour were 
there not other petitions borne upward on the wings of fer- 
vent, supplicating prayer? Knowing the object that lay so 
near his heart, the presence that had walked with him an 
ever-abiding companion since his earliest manhood's years; 
the heroic resolution that had set its firm roots into the 
very depths of his soul, the steadfast purpose that had nev- 
er left him day nor night — well may we answer, Yes, yes! 
For Africa he lived; for Africa, upheld by the strong faith 
in and the love of him who is the God of the oppressed 
and the Redeemer of the penitent, had he worked; and 
now for Africa, jvhile yet in the vigorous glow of man- 
hood's autumn, had his life been given. Alas, alas, that 
he had been called upon to make the sacrifice when the 
work was not more than begun ! From every shadowed 
plain, from out the depths of the darkening forests, from 
even the remotest recesses of the dreary mountain heights, 
the voices of woe were still calling to him, nor ceased day 
nor night. Thousands of perishing souls yet wailed out the 



LIFE OF DAVID* LIVINGSTON J:. 41o 



story of their wrongs, while the iron hand of cruelty and 
oppression clutched all the more fiendishly about the bleed- 
ing hearts of those for the redress of whose wrongs the very 
stones seemed to cry out. O God, was all this to continue? 
Was there to be no mitigation? Were these miserable 
creatures to go on perishing, with no hand outstretched to 
save? No, no! It would all come right in time, and jus- 
tice be done as only a righteous Avenger could mete it out! 
And can Ave doubt that ere his soul quitted its earthly ten- 
ement he failed to" wrestle in prayer with God for the speedy 
coming of that day? Well, well do we know that this was 
done, and that David Livingstone, with an undying faith 
in the righteousness of the cause for which his own life had 
been given a pure and willing sacrifice, committed the woes 
of stricken Africa into the hands of Him who has said, 
"Vengeance is mine; I will repay." 

Hastily lifting him to the bed, his stricken servants bent 
over him, trvin^ to divine how to restore him, the while 
hoping against hope that there might still be some pulse 
of life remaining. But their efforts were all in vain. Re- 
alizing this at last, they straightened his limbs upon the 
bed, folded his hands across his breast, placed upon the 
body a light covering, and then went out to the fire in 
front of the hut to consult together as to what further 
should be done. 



CHAPTER XXVI. 



DEVOTION OF LIVINGSTONES MEN — THE BODY BORNE TO THE 
COAST — ARRIVAL IN ENGLAND — UNIVERSAL SORROW OBSE- 
QUIES AT WESTMINSTER ABBEY — INSCRIPTION UPON THE TOMB. 



BEFORE the first flush of the coming dawn had 
streaked the eastern sky, every man connected with 
the bereaved little company of explorers knew what had 
happened during the night. The scene was extremely pa- 
thetic, as in the dim, gray light they gathered about the 
smoldering fire and talked in low, hushed voices. What 
shall be done? That was the question that presented it- 
self to every disturbed mind. Fully they recognized the 
complications that surrounded them. The dread supersti- 
tions of most of the African tribes concerning the dead 
were well known to them. Should Chitambo's people be- 
come aware of Livingstone's death, it was feared that the 
body would be immediately seized and subjected to some 
revolting funeral-rite that would either destroy it entirely 
or — what would be nearly as bad — place it forever beyond 
the reach of his men. They could not bear to think of such 
a fate as this for. him, the brave and noble master, even 
though it was but the mortal part of him that remained, 
the mere shell of what had been. No, no, it must not be! 
And assembled there about the dying fire, in the struggling 
light of coming day, those loyal, devoted men took upon 
themselves a heroic resolution — come what would, the body 
must be borne to the coast, and thence shijyped to his jieople 
(414) 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 415 



in England! It was a perilous and mighty undertaking; 
but so inflexible was their resolve, so genuine their devotion, 
that ever? when all its intricacies and dangers had been 
fully weighed not a man of them showed the least sign of 
shrinking from the ordeal. 

The first consideration was to keep Livingstone's death a 
secret from Chitambo's people; but it might have been 
known that under the circumstances such a thing was well- 
nigh impossible. The truth soon leaked out, in spite of the 
efforts made to conceal it. The men were now in actual 
fear of disastrous results; but they need not have been, as 
the sequel proved. Ghitambo and his people acted not 
only with reasonableness, but with great generosity. Ghi- 
tambo declared himself in accord with the men's desire to 
bear the body of their master back to the coast, and at once 
set about furthering their plans. He only asked in return 
that his people be allowed to show all honor to the dead, 
as it became them to do on the demise in their midst of so 
great a man as Livingstone, and to engage in their custom- 
ary forms of mourning. As none of these rites interfered 
in any way with the repose of the corpse, the men readily 
gave their consent. 

Preparations were now entered into to get the body in 
such a condition as to admit of its being borne on its long 
journey to the coast. Under Chitambo's direction a sepa- 
rate hut was built a short distance from the one in which 
Livingstone had died. It was so constructed that the en- 
tire top was open to the air. It was also built of such 
stout material as would preclude all chance of any wild 
beast breaking through the walls and thus getting io the 
body. As soon as the hut was finished the body was borne 
to it and placed upon a platform that had been erected for 



410 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



the purpose. Here the body was disemboweled, and the 
heart and other internal organs removed. Jacob Wain wright 
was then requested to read the burial service, which he pro- 
ceeded to do amidst the sobs of the men who stood around. 
A quantity of salt was next placed in the body, and the 
latter was so arranged as to receive the full glare of the 
sun. These were the only means taken toward the preser- 
vation of the corpse, save putting a small quantity of bran- 
dy into the mouth at regular intervals and rubbing some 
on the hair. Once a day regularly the position of the corpse 
was changed, and every precaution was taken that it should 
not be disturbed, the men keeping watch in detachments 
day and night. No molestation of any kind occurred. 

At the end of the fourteenth day from the first exposure 
of the corpse to the sun, the men began preparations for 
starting upon their long journey. The corpse was by this 
time very well dried, and was believed to be in the right 
state for preservation. Bending the knees inward, so as to 
render the package shorter, for the convenience of carry- 
ing, the men wrapped the body securely about in stout 
strips of new calico. The next object was to devise safe 
and convenient means of transportation. As they had 
neither planks nor tools of any kind, they were at a great 
loss to know what to do. Finally Susi thought of the bark 
of the mvonga-tree, which could be easily slipped away. 
One of these trees was then cut, and the bark taken off in 
the form of a cylinder. In this the body was placed, a 
piece of coarse sail-cloth being sewed about the whole for 
further protection. The package thus formed was lashed se- 
curely to a stout pole, and so arranged that either four or 
two men could carry the burden. The heart and other inter- 
nal organs, together with the viscera, had in the meantime 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE, 417 



been inclosed in a strong box and buried under a large 
nivula-tree. Jacob Wainwright was then asked to carve 
an inscription upon the tree, which he did, as follows: "Dr. 
Livingstone died on May 4th, 1873." What was more fit- 
ting than that his heart should repose in that land over the 
sin and degradation of which it had cried out again and 
again, and for the woes of whose stricken people it had 
well-nigh broken? 

Their arrangements completed, the men began their sad 
homeward march. It is not our purpose to enter into the 
full details of this trying and hazardous undertaking. The 
perils and obstacles were such that none but courageous and 
devoted hearts could ever have overcome them. At more 
than one place the men had to give up and lie down through 
sheer exhaustion. Sickness in its most harrowing form 
overtook them. Rome of them died. Fierce enemies at- 
tacked them; time and again they were reduced to the ex- 
pedient of using trickery to get the corpse through. But 
be it said to the everlasting praise and honor of these no- 
ble and trusty spirits — though ignorant and savage ones at 
best — that they successfully carried through an enterprise 
which nothing but the high motive-power of love, the in- 
centive of never-failing loyalty, could ever have accom- 
nlished. O let us not be stinting in one word of commen- 
dation of an act of heroic devotion that must forever stand 
out luminous against the background of time — that will 
cease not to be admired so long as the world's heart is at- 
tuned to the chords of pure and generous emotions! They 
were but savage men; they had been little trained in the 
ways of civilization. But two or three of them could read, 
one only could write with understanding. They had nei- 
ther been born nor cradled in the " lap of romance." The) 



418 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



knew nothing of those motives that prompt to heroic action 
for the mere sake of the world's plaudits. Their unfettered 
spirits had never been bound by the glittering cords of ri- 
otous imagination; they had never dreamed away even the 
smallest span of their lives under the " purple skies of fan- 
cy." No, none of these; yet there was that within their 
hearts, deep within their souls, which bade them lay aside 
all thoughts of self and follow the promptings of a pure and 
changeless love. For love they had followed their chosen 
master through all the terrors of the African swamps ; they 
had with him passed through the horrors of famine and fe- 
ver; they had kept their faces set in the direction he wished 
to go when every thing, even outraged Nature itself, was 
crying out for a return to home and friends* they had at- 
tended him as tenderly as women in his last illness ; they had 
chosen to meet the possible fury of a whole savage village; 
and now, for this same unselfish love alone, they had borne his 
lifeless body through all that tortuous tramp of more than 
a thousand miles. What more eloquent plea could be urged 
for those among whom David Livingstone lived and died, 
and for whom in his last earthly hour agonized prayer as- 
cended, than the unexampled courage, affection, and devo- 
tion of these men — themselves but savages, their home the 
dark, dark continent?* 

The cortege arrived at Bagamoio in February, 1874 — 
nine months from the time of starting out. Here the act- 



*It will assuredly interest our readers fo learn that the faithful 

Sr.si is now attached to one of the University Missions around Lake 
Nyassa. He is a most efficient and earnest worker. On being bap- 
tized into full connection with the Church, he took the name of Da- 
vid, in memory of the noble man who first taught him what it was 
to he a Christian. 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 41 9 



ing consul at Zanzibar, Capt. Prideaux, who had previously 
been notified of Livingstone's death, met the expedition with 
a cruiser, to which the remains were soon transferred. From 
Zanzibar the body was shipped to England, accompanied 
by the faithful Jacob Wainwright, On the morning of 
the 15th of April, 1874, the "Malwa," bearing all that re- 
mained of the brave and devoted Livingstone, steamed 
slowly into the London harbor, amidst the drooping of 
flags, the tolling of bells, and the sad booming of guns. 
Everywhere tokens of profound sorrow, honor, and respect 
were manifested. 

It had been decided, long before the " Malwa" reached 
English shores, that England would give sepulture to the 
remains of her greatest missionary and most distinguished 
explorer nowhere else than in her renowned Westminster 
Abbey. The body lay in state until the 18th of April, by 
which time arrangements had been perfected for one of the 
most imposing public funerals that England has ever seen. 
The account which follows, taken from one of the leading 
newspapers of the day, gives a full and feeling description 
of the obsequies: 

"Inside the Abbey, an immense congregation has as- 
sembled to wait for the arrival of the illustrious dead. 
The transepts are crowded with ticket-holders. Notable 
among the throng are the African travelers, who constitute 
such a natural guard of honor for this dead man. Fore- 
most among them, in right of gallant special service, and 
nearest to Livingstone's head, stands Stanley — sun-tanned 
anew from Ashantee — whose famous march of relief gives 
America the full right to celebrate at this moment, as we 
know she is doing, simultaneously with England, the obse- 
quies of the explorer. But for Stanley, Livingstone would 



420 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



have died long back, without aid or news from us; but near 
him are Grant, the discoverer along with Speke * of the 
Xyanza; Young, who was with Livingstone in old days, 
and who sailed the Nyassa Lake and the Shire River in 
quest of him; Oswell, tanned and grizzled with hunting 
and exploring under an African sun ; and beside them Rig- 
by, and Moffat, and Webb, the godfather of Lualaba, and 
the faithful friend who buried Mrs. Livingstone in the sad 
day of separation of husband and wife; Colonel Shelley, of 
Lake ISgami; Waller, of the Zambesi; Galton, Reade — 
what a band of Africani! Such a gathering of sunburned 
visages and far-traveled men was never seen before; and 
indeed the list might be lengthened with the names of a 
hundred other famous travelers present, who listen, with 
wistful looks, round their great dead chieftain, while Tal- 
lis's hymn is being sung, after the lesson read by Canon 
Conway. It is a well-known hymn— one which sings of 
ultimate rest after wandering, the only rest for all toils and 
travels, commencing — 

1 God of Bethel, by whose hand 
The people still are fed, 
"Who through this weary pilgrimage 
Hast all our fathers led.' 

"After the conclusion of this hymn, in which the congre- 
gation joined with much effect, the coffin is borne down the 
choir into the center of the nave, where, toward the west- 
ern end, the grave lias been prepared. Here also among 

* Nearly ten years prior to his death, Livingstone made this entry 
in his journal respecting his lamented friend and predecessor Capt. 
Speke: "23 Sept., 1S64— Went to the funeral of poor Capt. Speke, 
who when out shooting on the 15th, the day I arrived at Bath, was 
killed bv the accidental discharge of his gun." 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 421 

the dead lying around are ancient far- traveled worthies— 
companionable ashes for those which are now to be con- 
signed to the same unbroken and majestic rest. The pall 
is withdrawn, and the polished oak coffin is prepared for 
lowering into the dark cavity which opens so narrowly and 
so abruptly in the Abbey pavement, while the choir sings, 
4 Man that is born of a woman,' to Croft's setting, and then 
the tender strains of Purcell's ' Thou knowest, Lord.' This 
is the very last that will be seen of 'this our dear brother; ' 
and now indeed strong men are fain to bend their heads, 
and sobs, not from women only, mingle with the alternate 
sighing and rejoicing of the solemn music. The dizzy edges 
of (he clear-story, eighty feet overhead, are crowded with 
people looking down from that perilous eminence upon the 
throng around the grave, and shadows are seen at many of 
the Abbey windows of others peering through at the ' last 
scene of all.' As the precious burden descends, the inscrip- 
tion on the plate may be seen : 

David Livingstone, 

Born at Blantyre, Lanarkshire, Scotland, 

19th March, 1813. 

Died at Ilala, Central Africa, 

4th May, 187-°>. 

" The service draws to its end with the ' Forasmuch ' and 
the following prayers, read in a clear, sustained voice of 
the deepest solemnity and feeling by Dean Stanley; and 
then once more the organ speaks the unspeakable — as mu- 
sic only can — sounding forth ' I heard a voice from heaven.' 
But the very finest musical passage of all comes last, in the 
beautiful anthem of Handel, 'His body rests in peace, but 
his name liveth evermore.' 

" Last of all, there rains down upon the lid of Living- 



422 LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 

stone's coffin a bright and fragrant shower of wreaths and 
farewell flowers from a hundred loving hands; and each of 
those present takes a long parting glance at the great trav- 
eler's resting-place, and at the oaken coffin, buried in the 
spring blossoms and palms and garlands, wherein lies ' as 
much as could die' of the good, great-hearted, loving, fear- 
less, and faithful David Livingstone/' 

The marble slab that now marks Livingstone's resting- 
place in the Abbey bears the following inscription : 

Brought by faithful hands 

over laud and sea, 
here rests 
David Livixostoxe, 
Missionary, Traveler, Philanthropist. 
Born March 19, 1813, 
At Blantvre, Lanarkshire. 
Died May 4, 1878, 
At Chitambo's village, Ilala. 
For thirty years Ins life was spent in an unwearied effort to evangel- 
ize the native races, to explore the undiscovered secrets, 
and abolish the desolating slave-trade of Central 
Africa, where with his last words he wrote: 
"All I can say in my solitude is, May Heaven's rich blessing 
come down on every one — American, English, or Turk — 
who will help to heal this open sore of the world." 



LIFE OF DAVID LIVINGSTONE. 



42:) 



lie who works in the field of the world 
Must work with a faith sublime; 

For the seed he sows must lie in the earth 
And wait for God's good lime. 

But nevertheless the harvest is sure, 

Though the sower the sheaves may not see; 

For never a word was spoken for Him 
But will ring through eternity. 



THE END. 






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